Sri Lanka has the second highest rate of Cirrhosis in the world which is 55 per 10,000. Sri Lanka is second only to Moldova, a nation of Vodka drinkers, Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) President Dr. Anula Wijesundara pointed out yesterday.
Addressing a media seminar and a workshop held at the SLMA Auditorium in Colombo yesterday to mark the World No-Alcohol Day, she said Cirrhosis was the sixth leading cause of death and the fourth leading cause of hospitalisation in Sri Lanka.
Dr. Wijesundara said in Sri Lanka around 18,000 men die annually from alcohol related diseases and 40 percent of Sri Lankan males consume alcohol. The per capita consumption of alcohol in Sri Lanka is 3.5 litres which is the highest among the SAARC countries. Per capita consumption among males alone is 7.4 litres. The Government’s annual public health expenditure on diseases related to alcohol consumption is Rs. 140 billion.
Dr. Wijesundara said that annually the Government earns Rs.143 billion from tobacco and alcohol taxes. But the direct and indirect costs of alcohol and tobacco related diseases in Sri Lanka is Rs. 209.03 billion. The profit of Distilleries Company of Sri Lanka (DCSL) after paying excise duty was Rs.7.7 billion in 2011 and now it has declined to Rs. 6.5 billion, she noted.
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