Alcohol features in one in six suicides, psychiatrist claims

THE INEXTRICABLE and alarming link between heavy drinking and suicide in Ireland - particularly in the impromptu suicides of young men - has been highlighted at a national conference in Cork.

Dr Jane Marshall, consultant psychiatrist at the Maudsley Hospital, London, said alcohol was implicated in one in six suicides in Ireland, but she believed the rate was much higher than this in reality.

"Suicide rates are lower in women because of lower rates of alcohol and substance abuse, but as women drink more, we will probably see a corresponding increase in suicide among young women," she told the Irish College of General Practice (ICGP) conference in Cork on Saturday.

The Irish born and trained consultant said misuse of alcohol and drugs was associated with an increased risk of suicide - the alcohol-dependent population in the UK was 7.3 times more likely to be depressed than the non-dependent population.

"It's the chicken and egg syndrome. Usually, the alcohol problem comes first, but in some people, particularly women who have experienced traumatic life events such as sexual abuse, alcohol seems to be secondary to their depression problem."

Dr Marshall said abstinence from alcohol and drugs was what health professionals must work towards with patients and she highlighted the importance of linking in with local alcohol and psychological services.

The theme of the ICGP's national conference on alcohol and drugs was The Low Down on Depression and Suicide. The aim of this conference was to highlight the connection between alcohol and drugs and depression and suicide and to ensure that primary care was better equipped to recognise the tell-tale signs and to treat patients accordingly.

In his keynote address, Barnardos chief executive, Fergus Finlay, said the organisation was dealing with an increasing number of children whose lives had been "blighted by suicide" where alcohol and drugs had been involved.

He spoke of one 10-year-old boy whose father left him a letter telling him he was now the head of the household after taking his own life. The child later broke under the pressure of the responsibilities he had been expected to assume.

"The number of people who commit suicide fortified by drink and drugs is staggering but a 10-year-old child cannot understand this link. Every single kid we work with carries guilt - sometimes for the rest of their lives or until they are lucky enough to get help - and believes they are responsible in some way for their mother or father's suicide," said Mr Finlay.

In his talk, Dr Declan Bedford, public health consultant with the HSE North East, pointed out that 16-17 year olds in Ireland spend a staggering €145 million per annum on alcohol.

He said: "The Irish suicide rate increased consistently from 1980 to 2006 with a slight drop in recent years. The alcohol consumption rate mirrors the suicide rate, ie the more a nation drinks, the more alcohol-related harm there will be."

In a study of coroners' reports on suicide deaths, Dr Bedford found that 90 per cent of those under 30 had alcohol in their blood, 58 per cent were drunk and nearly all were men.

"I can tell you suicide was far from their minds when they went out that night," he said.