An Average Scot Downs 46 Bottles of Liquor per Year

Study data from research collated by NHS Health Scotland shows numerically what health workers have been saying for some time - Scots are drinking a dangerous amount of alcohol.

According to the study:

• Every person over the age of 18 consumes 12.2 liters of pure alcohol each year, which is equivalent to 537 pints of beer, 130 bottles of wine or 46 bottles of hard liquor.

• The 50.5 million liters of alcohol sold in Scotland last year provides enough alcohol for every adult in Scotland to exceed recommended consumption guidelines

• Scots drink 25% more alcohol than people in England and Wales

Scottish Health Minister, Nicola Sturgeon called for people to “wake up” to the severity of Scotland’s alcohol problem. She supports a government proposed minimum price for alcohol, saying, "All the evidence tells us that the big rise in Scottish alcohol consumption in recent decades is closely linked with the 70% drop in alcohol's relative cost.”

At present she says, a person can exceed their weekly recommended alcohol consumption for just over 3 pounds.