CHILDREN as young as 13 are being treated for alcohol problems in York, where increasingly more women are also battling against the lure of the bottle.

The sobering revelation comes as new figures highlight a massive rise in the number of Britons drinking themselves to death.

During the 1980s and 1990s, cirrhosis death rates for men rose by more than two-thirds in England and Wales, according to a report in the UK medical journal, The Lancet.

The number of women dying from the disease increased by almost half over the same period.

Researchers blame the country's drinking culture which has seen alcohol consumption double since 1960, with the rise of binge-

drinking among young men and women.

They argue that new licensing laws are not easing the problem.

Alison Tubbs, of Bootham-based York Alcohol Advice Service, said her organisation had long called for more investment in treating alcohol problems.

"Over the last five years, if not longer, we have noticed a considerable increase in referrals. The age range has widened. We are working with young people and more women now."

One-third of the clients were female eight to ten years ago. Now they make up half the client base.

"Pubs used to be male dominated," said Alison. "Now that isn't the case. Bars are becoming more attractive places for women and young couples, plus alcohol is readily available."

York Alcohol Advice Service has recently employed a young person's worker to meet a need for such a specialist.

"He is the only alcohol specialist worker for young people in York," said Alison. "We only have one post funded. We are working with young people as young as 13 - boys and girls.

"We are also seeing more people in the 25 to 30 age bracket than we used to.

"The Government is starting to look at the problem. But as a treatment agency, we feel the process is very slow. We have all the evidence, but there's no sign of the funding. In the meantime, agencies are closing.

"We are working to capacity. There are only enough treatment places for one in every 45 problem drinkers in Yorkshire and the Humber."

Alison is reserving judgement about what impact the new licensing laws will have, but said: "If alcohol was more expensive that would go a long way to cutting people's drinking."

For The Lancet study, deaths from different causes were analysed on a World Health Organisation database. In the 1950s, England and Wales had the lowest rates of liver cirrhosis death in Western Europe - 3.4 men in every 100,000 each year and 2.2 women.

By 2001, cirrhosis death rates stood at 14.1 for men and 7.7 for women.

The impact of alcohol

The Safer York Partnership commissioned an £8,000 study into the impact of booze on our city last year.

Community chiefs ordered the report after a national survey laid bare the effect of booze on the health service, crime and disorder.

Researchers at Alcohol Concern found one in every four people in York drinks too much alcohol.

Almost 18,000 women and more than 30,000 men drink more than their daily recommended limits of alcohol in York (26.5 per cent of the population).

More than 24,000 people regularly binge drink, and about 6,600 people are drinking at levels that will harm their health.

Women make up 53 per cent of those who seek help.

Updated: 09:31 Saturday, January 07, 2006