The Republican Scientific and Practical Center for Mental Health told what kind of alcohol Belarusians drink and in what quantities

November 23, MINSK . About whatBelarusians drink ALCOHOL and in what quantities, said the HEAD of the drug monitoring and preventive medicine sector of the organizational and methodological department of the State Institution "Republican Scientific and Practical Center for Mental Health" Artem Malmygin, BELTA correspondent reports.

“Drunkenness is a medical and social problem. When we talk about assessing alcohol consumption, the indicator of alcohol consumption per capita is of great importance. This figure is calculated annually, and in 2022 it amounted to 11.8 liters (of pure alcohol per year. - BELTA's note) of registered and unregistered alcohol per capita of people aged 15 years and older,” shared Artem Malmygin.

According to him, in 2018 the figure was 11.6 liters, in 2019 - 11.7 liters, in 2020 - 11.8 liters and in 2021 - 12.0 liters. “Compared to 2021, our indicator has decreased slightly. But over the five-year period it has practically not changed. It remains at such a stable level,” said the head of the drug monitoring and preventive medicine sector.

The head of the sector also noted that this problem is inherent in the entire European region. “The European region is the most drinking region in the world. Among our neighbors, Lithuania is directly in first place - more than 15 liters per capita,” shared Artem Malmygin.

He also emphasized the importance of the type of alcohol. “The pattern of alcohol consumption and the preferred type of alcoholic beverages are one of the qualitative indicators of the level of alcoholization of the population,” he said.

“Now, if you look in physical terms, then beer and low-alcohol drinks come out on top . But a more reliable indicator is the consumption of alcohol in pure alcohol. And in this regard, strong alcohol takes first place in the consumption structure, this is more than 55%. Second place - low-alcohol drinks (23.2%). Next we have medium-strength drinks , wine , champagne (11.2%) and in fourth place fruit wines (9.9%),” Artem Malmygin cited statistics.

He recalled that problems associated with alcohol consumption by the population pose a real threat to demographic security and hinder the sustainable development of Belarusian society and the state.