Globally, alcohol consumption contributes to 3 million deaths each year, and to the loss of health of several millions of people. The consumption of alcohol is causally linked to over 200 health conditions, including liver diseases, road injuries, violence, several types of cancers, cardiovascular diseases, suicides, tuberculosis, and HIV/AIDS. In the Region of the Americas, alcohol is responsible for 5.5% of total deaths and 6.7% of total disability-adjusted life years. For the same amount of liter per capita of alcohol consumed, those living in low and middle income countries have a relative higher rate of alcohol-related deaths and disabilities compared to high income countries. Alcohol consumption worsens inequalities between and within countries, affecting more the poor and disadvantaged. Detailed information is available on the topic The burden of selected alcohol-related diseases.
Level of alcohol consumption
The most important and commonly used indicator of the level of alcohol consumption is the total (recorded and unrecorded) alcohol per capita consumption (APC) in liters of pure alcohol per person per year. APC is a population-level measure of volume that quantifies the average amount of absolute or pure alcohol consumed by the average person in a given period of time. It is a useful foundation for understanding alcohol use in a given location.
This data visualization presents the level of alcohol consumption in countries of the Americas through two key indicators: alcohol total per capita consumption (APC), and alcohol drinkers only per capita consumption in liters of pure alcohol per person in a year in people aged 15 years and over.