TEENAGE DRINK AND DRUGS IN EUROPE

Alcohol, drugs and smoking around Europe was measured Britain may be at or
near the top of the European leagues for drinking, smoking and drug abuse,
but how do other countries fare?

There is distinct split in Europe when it comes to alcohol abuse among the
young.

While there are exceptions, more Mediterranean facing countries such as
Italy, France and Portugal have far fewer teenagers who get drunk frequently.

While well over a quarter of UK 15 and 16-year-olds confessed to getting
drunk at least 20 times in their lifetime, in France, this was just 6%, and
in Italy, just 2%.

Research has suggested that the differing culture surrounding alcohol means
that what consumption there is, is spread over the entire week rather than
simply concentrated into binges on Friday and Saturday nights.

At the other end of the scale is Denmark, where more than 40% of 15 and
16-year-olds had been drunk more than 20 times.

Other high scorers were Ireland (34%) and Finland (28%).

Smoking

Cigarette smoking is spread fairly evenly across Europe among teenagers.

Russia and Finland rate highly on children who have smoked more than 40
times in their life - while Cyprus and Portugal are at the foot of this
league table.

There is huge disparity in the use of cannabis - the most popular drug
among teenagers.

While Cypriot, Maltese and Greek teenagers were least likely to have tried
it, the UK and France tied for top place, with 35% of children confessing
to having experimented.

When it comes to less popular drugs, such as amphetamines, LSD and ecstasy,
some countries stand out.

In Estonia, 7% of teenagers have tried amphetamines - while virtually no
Romanian teenagers own up to using them.

Neighbouring Latvia has an ecstasy culture - 6% of teenagers have taken it,
compared to none in Hungary.