The number of people dying as a result of alcohol abuse in West Lothian has soared to the highest level in 18 years.
Alcohol-related deaths in the county spiked during the two years of lockdown restrictions and are the highest they have been since 2003.
In 2021, 40 people died as a result of alcohol abuse, while in the year before 45 people died.
The highest number before that was 2003, when 40 people passed away.
New figures from the National Records of Scotland revealed 174 people died in the period 2016 and that jumped to 186 between 2017 and 2021 – the first time stats covering the pandemic were released.
In Scotland as a whole, 1245 people died last year alone, prompting calls for urgent action to tackle the problem.
A West Lothian Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) spokesperson said the number of alcohol-related deaths in West Lothian has seen an increase, but remains below the national average.
He continued: “Every alcohol-related death is a tragedy and we would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to all West Lothian families impacted. Each
alcohol-related death is more than just a statistic and represents a friend, family member or loved one.
“The number of alcohol-related deaths in West Lothian has seen a small increase, but remains below the national average.
“The impact of the pandemic and deprivation are significant factors in the rise.
“In West Lothian, health and council staff through the Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) and our partners continue to make every effort to support people with addictions such as alcohol to break the cycle and improve their outcomes.
“While the reasons behind alcohol misuse can be complex, we would encourage anyone who needs support to make use of all help available, with more details available at www.wldas.com.”
Dr Alastair MacGilchrist, chair of SHAAP (Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems) added: “It is disappointing, but not surprising, that the death toll from alcohol was just as high in 2021 as it was the previous year, which had seen a sharp rise coinciding with the first year of the pandemic.
“During lockdown, our drinking habits changed, with light drinkers drinking less but heavy drinkers drinking more and recent studies have highlighted the major negative impact this change of drinking patterns could have in the long term, resulting in many more people having an illness resulting from alcohol and many more people dying as a direct result of alcohol.
“The Scottish Government must increase funding and resources for alcohol services, to ensure that vital support is in place for people living with an existing alcohol problem.
“It is also essential that population-wide policies such as Minimum Unit Pricing remain in place to try to mitigate alcohol-related harms.”
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