Two new drug and alcohol reports

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) has this week released these reports:
Drugs in Australia 2010: tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, provides a comprehensive summary of Australians' consumption of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs and use of treatment services. It also includes information about drug-related health issues, and drugs in the context of crime and law enforcement. 

In 2010, 15% of Australians aged 14 years or over were daily smokers, and 24% were ex-smokers. 59% had never smoked. Daily smoking rates have fallen by more than a third over the past two decades, from 24% in 1991.  78% of Australians over 12 had consumed alcohol over the previous year in 2010, including 46% who drank at least weekly.  Most people drank at levels that did not put them at risk of harm, but 28% of males and 11% of females drank alcohol at levels that put them at risk of alcohol-related harm over their lifetime. In addition, 23% of males and 9% of females consumed alcohol in quantities that put them at risk of alcohol-related injury from a single drinking occasion at least weekly. An estimated 13.1% of people aged 14 years or older had driven a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol in 2010.

Alcohol and other drug treatment services in Australia 2009-10: report on the National Minimum Data Set reveals that around 170,000 treatment episodes for alcohol and other drug use were provided in Australia in 2009-10. Almost half were for treatment related to alcohol use-the highest proportion observed since the collection began in 2001. As with previous years, counselling was the most common type of treatment offered. One in ten episodes involved more than one type of treatment.