[Estimation of alcohol-related deaths in France in 1985]

The number of deaths attributable to alcohol in France during 1985 has been estimated from national death statistics, and from records attributable risks for each disease related to alcohol. The attributable risks for alcohol by sex and by disease were computed from the 1974 survey by the Institut Français d'Opinion Publique of a national sample of 981 adults on consumption of alcohol, and from the relative risk of death for alcohol drinkers estimated from epidemiological studies. The total number of deaths attributable to alcohol in the population aged 20 or more was 52,000 in 1985 (44,500 men and 7,500 women). Half of these deaths occurred before age 65. Nine percent of the overall mortality was attributable to alcohol (3 percent for women and 16 percent for men). This proportion was 28 percent for men between ages 45 and 64. Among these 52,000 deaths, 14,000 were due to liver cirrhosis or alcoholic psychosis, 16,500 to cancer, mainly from oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, esophagus, or liver, 8,900 to external causes of injury, 9,050 to cardiovascular disease, 550 to pneumonia, and 3,000 to ill-defined diseases.