People in the UK are among the most prolific drinkers in the world, according to a report released by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
Britons over the age of 15 on average drink 11.6 litres of pure alcohol a year, according to the “Global status report on alcohol and health 2014”.
The report provides country profiles for alcohol consumption in the 194 WHO member states, looking at the resulting impact on public health and policy responses.
And it reveals that the harmful use of alcohol causes 3.3 million deaths a year worldwide.
Europe is the region with the highest consumption of alcohol per person, making up the entire top 10.
Belarus takes the top spot, with people on average drinking 17.5 litres of pure alcohol a year, followed by the Republic of Moldova where the figure is 16.8 litres.
Australia and Canada also have high levels of alcohol consumption, with people on average drinking 12.2 and 10.2 litres a year respectively.
In the United States the figure is marginally lower at 9.2 litres.
But in northern Africa and the Middle East, the average figure is less than 2.5 litres of alcohol per person, with many countries having figures below one litre.
The average figure globally is 6.2 litres of pure alcohol per person per year.
But as less than half the world population (38.3 per cent) actually drinks alcohol, this means that those who do drink consume on average 17 litres of pure alcohol annually, the report said.
The WHO warned that alcohol consumption increases the risk of developing more than 200 diseases, including liver cirrhosis and some cancers.
Dr Oleg Chestnov, WHO assistant director-general for non-communicable diseases and mental health, said: “More needs to be done to protect populations from the negative health consequences of alcohol consumption.
"The report clearly shows that there is no room for complacency when it comes to reducing the harmful use of alcohol.”
The report also points out that a higher percentage of deaths among men than among women are from alcohol-related causes - 7.6 per cent of men's deaths and four per cent of women's deaths - though there is evidence that women may be more vulnerable to some alcohol-related health conditions compared to men.
Dr Shekhar Saxena, director for mental health and substance abuse at WHO, said: “We found that worldwide about 16 per cent of drinkers engage in heavy episodic drinking - often referred to as 'binge-drinking' - which is the most harmful to health.
"Lower-income groups are more affected by the social and health consequences of alcohol. They often lack quality health care and are less protected by functional family or community networks."
The report also highlights the need for action by countries including national leadership to develop policies to reduce harmful use of alcohol, national awareness-raising activities and health services to deliver prevention and treatment services, in particular increasing prevention, treatment and care for patients and their families, and supporting initiatives for screening and brief interventions.
The figures represent the average amount of pure alcohol consumed per capita in each country between 2008 and 2010.
世界卫生组织公布的一项报告显示，英国饮酒者的酗酒量是世界上最高的之一。
《2014年全球酒精与健康状况报告》称，15岁以上的英国人年人均摄入酒精11.6升。
该报告提供了世界卫生组织194个成员国的酒精消耗量数据，并研究饮酒对公众健康和政策效果的影响。
该报告称全球每年酒精滥用会导致330万人丧失生命。
欧洲的年人均酒精消耗量居首位，报告中前十的国家均在欧洲。
白俄罗斯居首位，年人均摄入纯酒精量为17.5升，紧随其后的是摩尔多瓦共和国，16.8升。
澳大利亚和加拿大的酒精消耗量也很高，分别为每年人均12.2升和10.2升。
美国人的人均摄入量略低，为9.2升。
但是在北非和中东，人均酒精摄入量低于2.5升，这些地区的许多国家甚至低于1升。
全球的年人均酒精摄入量为6.2升。
但介于全球不到一半的人（即38.3%）会饮酒，报道指出，这意味着饮酒者每年平均消耗17升纯酒精。
世界卫生组织发出警告，饮用酒精会增加200多种疾病的病发几率，包括肝硬化和某些癌症。
世界卫生组织总干事的助手，奥列格·切斯诺夫博士负责非传染性疾病和心理健康，他说：“我们需要做出更多努力，来保护人民免与酒精摄入带来的不良健康影响。”
“这份报告清楚地表明在减少酒精过量摄入方面，我们决不能掉以轻心。”
报告也指出，男性因饮酒导致的死亡率比女性死亡率高，男性为7.6%，女性为4%，尽管有研究称，相比于男性，女性更易罹患由酒精引发的疾病。
世界卫生组织心理健康和药物滥用方面的主管，舍哈尔·萨克斯内博士说：“我们发现全球大约16%的饮酒者参与短暂性狂饮，他们被称为‘酗酒者’，这是最损害健康的。”
“低收入群体更易受到酒精带来的社会和健康问题的影响。他们通常缺乏优质的医疗保障，而且很少有和睦的家庭和社区机构的保护。”
这份报告也强调国家需采取措施，领导层应该制定政策来减少使用酒精带来的危害，通过开展宣传活动，提高民众意识，组织卫生活动，提供预防和治疗服务，尤其是要加强治疗，关心病人，对病人及其家属进行有效的预防知识普及。同时倡导疾病筛查和短暂的介入治疗。
这些数据呈现了从2008年到2012年间每个国家的人均纯酒精消耗量。