The press release for the journal article1 referred to in our previous thoughtpiece has some interesting statistics relating to alcohol around the world as part of its ‘notes for editors’. The following relate to 2016.
Highest prevalence of alcohol consumption
| Males | Females | ||||
| Country | Prevalence % | Country | Prevalence % | ||
| 1 | Denmark | 97.1 | 1 | Denmark | 95.3 |
| 2 | Norway | 94.3 | 2 | Norway | 91.4 |
| 3 | Argentina | 94.3 | 3 | Germany | 90.0 |
| 4 | Germany | 94.3 | 4 | Argentina | 89.9 |
| 5 | Poland | 93.8 | 5 | New Zealand | 88.5 |
| 6 | France | 93.1 | 6 | Switzerland | 88.4 |
| 7 | South Korea | 91.3 | 7 | Slovakia | 87.2 |
| 8 | Switzerland | 91.2 | 8 | France | 86.9 |
| 9 | Greece | 90.8 | 9 | Sweden | 86.1 |
| 10 | Iceland | 90.3 | 10 | Iceland | 84.8 |
Lowest prevalence of alcohol consumption
| Males | Females | ||||
| Country | Prevalence % | Country | Prevalence % | ||
| 1 | Pakistan | 0.9 | 1 | Bangladesh | 0.3 |
| 2 | Bangladesh | 1.0 | 2 | Morocco | 1.1 |
| 3 | Egypt | 1.1 | 3 | Pakistan | 1.5 |
| 4 | Mali | 2.5 | 4 | Egypt | 1.5 |
| 5 | Morocco | 3.0 | 5 | Nepal | 1.5 |
| 6 | Senegal | 3.2 | 6 | Syria | 1.6 |
| 7 | Mauritania | 3.2 | 7 | Bhutan | 1.9 |
| 8 | Syria | 5.0 | 8 | Myanmar | 2.3 |
| 9 | Indonesia | 7.2 | 9 | Tunisia | 2.3 |
| 10 | Palestine | 7.9 | 10 | Senegal | 2.6 |
Highest average number of alcoholic drinks per day
| Males | Females | ||||
| Country | Prevalence % | Country | Prevalence % | ||
| 1 | Romania | 8.2 | 1 | Ukraine | 4.2 |
| 2 | Portugal | 7.3 | 2 | Andorra | 3.4 |
| 3 | Luxembourg | 7.3 | 3 | Luxembourg | 3.4 |
| 4 | Lithuania | 7.0 | 4 | Belarus | 3.4 |
| 5 | Ukraine | 7.0 | 5 | Sweden | 3.2 |
| 6 | Bosnia-Herzegovina | 6.5 | 6 | Denmark | 3.2 |
| 7 | Belarus | 6.0 | 7 | Ireland | 3.1 |
| 8 | Estonia | 6.0 | 8 | United Kingdom | 3.0 |
| 9 | Spain | 5.8 | 9 | Germany | 2.9 |
| 10 | Hungary | 5.5 | 10 | Switzerland | 2.8 |
Lowest average number of alcoholic drinks per day
| Males | Females | ||||
| Country | Prevalence % | Country | Prevalence % | ||
| 1 | Pakistan | 0.0008 | 1 | Iran | 0.0003 |
| 2 | Iran | 0.0004 | 2 | Kuwait | 0.01 |
| 3 | Kuwait | 0.02 | 3 | Mauritania | 0.02 |
| 4 | Comoros | 0.02 | 4 | Libya | 0.02 |
| 5 | Libya | 0.02 | 5 | Pakistan | 0.03 |
| 6 | Bangladesh | 0.03 | 6 | Timor-Leste | 0.04 |
| 7 | Palestine | 0.04 | 7 | Palestine | 0.04 |
| 8 | Mauritania | 0.05 | 8 | Yemen | 0.04 |
| 9 | Yemen | 0.05 | 9 | Tunisia | 0.04 |
| 10 | Saudi Arabia | 0.05 | 10 | Syria | 0.05 |
- Alcohol use and burden for 195 countries and territories, 1990-2016: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2016. Lancet 2018 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(18)31310-2
