Leading killer in Finland? Alcohol.

[Ally_Kat]

Leading killer in Finland? Alcohol.

By MATTI HUUHTANEN, Associated Press Writer



Alcohol is now the leading killer of Finnish adults, with consumption reaching an all-time high last year in the Nordic nation, officials said Friday.

More than 2,000 people between the ages of 15 and 64 were killed by alcohol poisoning or illnesses caused by alcohol consumption last year, the government's leading welfare and health agency said. Nearly 1,000 people died in accidents or violent incidents caused by alcohol.

"This is truly a worrying trend," said Kristiina Kuussaari of the National Research and Development Center for Welfare and Health. "The serious negative effects will continue to grow for years to come."

Alcohol was responsible for 17 percent of all deaths among 15- to 64-year-old men, surpassing heart disease for the first time, the agency said. Alcohol also caused more than 10.5 percent of all deaths in adult women, alongside breast cancer, for the first time.

Since 2003, the cost of treating alcohol-related illnesses has grown by 14 percent, peaking at $1.1 billion last year in this nation of 5.2 million known for heavy drinking.

The government has traditionally kept a tight control on alcohol consumption with high prices in its Alko monopoly retail outlets, and supermarkets do not sell beer with higher alcohol content.

However, in March 2004 it slashed alcohol taxes by more than 40 percent to discourage growing "booze cruises" to Russia and neighboring Estonia, where alcohol is much cheaper.

The move caused an outcry from health officials who warned of negative health effects, and police who reported a rise in public drunkenness and anti-social behavior.

Officials reported a 10 percent growth in binge drinking among 17-year-olds in the first six months after the tax cut, and general consumption began to grow, reaching new records.

Last year, Finns drank the equivalent of 14.5 million gallons of pure grain alcohol — a 14 percent increase from 2003, just before the alcohol taxes were slashed.

[Ally_Kat]

note to self: must party in Finland one day

[Nitro Express]

Party in Russia. Booze is cheaper.

[Coyote]

Originally posted by Nitro Express
Party in Russia. Booze is cheaper.

Shadier place to boogie, not to mention, with the Russian mob and all...

[Golden AWe]

This same test told that the amount of PROBLEM USERS has not grown, as the same 10% of the people drink HALF of the alcohol. They did a stupid move when they brought down the hard liquor prizes instead of mellow alcohols (wine etc.) - I think it's the governments way to save retirement fee expenses to kill the problem users earlier.

I wouldn't be too worried if the use of alcohol would raise 40 percent, if the finns would drink 2 beer every day instead of 10 on the saturday night, but it won't happen as long as vodka is cheap and wine expensive, and wine is not available in the supermarkets. It's also hard to learn the european socializing, dating culture when the taxes are so high on food and drink and people can't go to restaurants and cafe's enough.

[FORD]

I don't care how cheap vodka is, I'd never drink that shit again. Anything that gives me a hangover for three fucking days isn't worth the trouble.

[Golden AWe]

Originally posted by FORD
I don't care how cheap vodka is, I'd never drink that shit again. Anything that gives me a hangover for three fucking days isn't worth the trouble.

HA!!!

Well the cheapened taxes include whiskey, bourbon and tequila too. They are still imported so they're not as cheap as vodka but...

I haven't been drunk for four months now. My epilepsy medication doesn't allow me to take more than one beer a night, it's too harmful for the liver. I've been doing dahm well without alcohol all that time. I've gone out even more than before but and it hasn't slowed me down, actually I've also lost six kilos only by quitting drinking. It's impressive how fun this is.

[Ally_Kat]

Originally posted by Golden AWe
actually I've also lost six kilos only by quitting drinking.

yeah, between the carbs, the water retention, and the alcohol slowing down metabolism, it's really easy to pack the weight on with drinking.

I haven't gone out and gotten liquored up in ages. I'm one of those loser homebodies. Thinking I might let loose after graduation in a few weeks. Plus, the birthday is coming up. Might have to go at it Britney-style, sans the panty thing

[Golden AWe]

Besides, there are other more interesting things in life to be happy about :D

(that's not me in the photo but everyone knows the feeling

like kid in a toy store)

http://img156.imagevenue.com/aAfkjfp01fo1i-23311/loc556/65827_Sari_strsauna2_123_556lo.jpg

[Seshmeister]

Originally posted by Ally_Kat


Alcohol is now the leading killer of Finnish adults, with consumption reaching an all-time high last year in the Nordic nation, officials said Friday.



Ally as someone who has studied journalism you should know better or are you winding us up...:)

2000 a year doesn't sound like a lot to me.

Lets look it another way. Your country obviously by definition has to have a leading killer for people between 15 and 65.

Which would you choose?

1) Homocides

2) Cancer

3) Road accidents

4) Drug Abuse

5) Congenital diseases

6) War

7) Communical diseases (Malaria, TB, AIDs etc)

8) Starvation

9) Alcohol Abuse



#9 BY FAR IS THE ABSOLUTE BEST!

[BITEYOASS]

Well fuck, I wanted to go to Helsinki get drunk and sing some parody lyrics to "Hard Rock Hallelujah". It was gonna be called "Hard Cock Hallelujah". LOL

[BITEYOASS]

gotta write the lyrics first.

[Ally_Kat]

Originally posted by Seshmeister
Ally as someone who has studied journalism you should know better or are you winding us up...:)

2000 a year doesn't sound like a lot to me.

Lets look it another way. Your country obviously by definition has to have a leading killer for people between 15 and 65.

Which would you choose?

1) Homocides

2) Cancer

3) Road accidents

4) Drug Abuse

5) Congenital diseases

6) War

7) Communical diseases (Malaria, TB, AIDs etc)

8) Starvation

9) Alcohol Abuse



#9 BY FAR IS THE ABSOLUTE BEST!

What crawled up your ass and died? You make it sound as if I'm slamming Finland. I just saw the article and added cuz we had a lot of Norway news articles. Hell, I put that in the title description if you read it. If you have a real issue with the article, talk to the Finnish governmental office that is making the big stink.

[MAPRamone]

Originally posted by Seshmeister


1) Homocides



I know what a homicide is but what's a homocide? Murder of a gay guy? If homocide is the leading source of death in a country it would have to be the gayest and the most homophobic at the same time! Well i've heard of guys getting it on with other guys in Afghanistan and it is a fumdamentalist Muslim cuntry so maybe it's the one.:D

[Coyote]

Originally posted by Ally_Kat
If you have a real issue with the article, talk to the Finnish governmental office that is making the big stink.

I'm not entirely sure if that would be of any use, given they'll let pretty much ANYBODY into congress... Celebrities included.

[RuzDNailz]

The only 2 brands of Vodka we get from Finland are either Strom and
Finlandia. Drinking is fun, but people tend to let it get too far. I know so many people who mix those Red Bull drinks with alcohol at these bars downtown. That is a lethal mix because it will jack up your heart rate and with accompany of hard liqour is not good at all, period.

[Golden AWe]

Originally posted by MAPRamone
I know what a homicide is but what's a homocide? Murder of a gay guy? If homocide is the leading source of death in a country it would have to be the gayest and the most homophobic at the same time! Well i've heard of guys getting it on with other guys in Afghanistan and it is a fumdamentalist Muslim cuntry so maybe it's the one.:D

HAHA!

[BITEYOASS]

Homocide is what happens when Joe Thunder gets fatally stabbed in the ass by Joe Rogan. LOL

[Seshmeister]

Originally posted by Ally_Kat
What crawled up your ass and died? You make it sound as if I'm slamming Finland. I just saw the article and added cuz we had a lot of Norway news articles. Hell, I put that in the title description if you read it. If you have a real issue with the article, talk to the Finnish governmental office that is making the big stink.

Calm down lady...:)

[Nitro Express]

Originally posted by Coyote
Shadier place to boogie, not to mention, with the Russian mob and all...

No shit. I've been to Russia twice. Once in 1978 when it was part of the USSR and in 1995. Put it this way, there were no pickpocketing gypsies or street crime under the iron fist of communism. We were allowed to go anywhere we wanted in Moscow and Lenningrad but of course we had KGB agents walking behind us. They were great though because they kept us from getting lost. One was nice enough to pull some strings and get us into the Bolshoi Ballet and tickets were hard to get. Breznev wanted to impress us Americans I guess.

The communist free Russia is scarier to visit than the old USSR. Not that I'm saying communism is great but you could walk anywhere in Moscow or Lenningrad in those days and feel safe.

[Coyote]

Originally posted by Nitro Express
No shit. I've been to Russia twice. Once in 1978 when it was part of the USSR and in 1995. Put it this way, there were no pickpocketing gypsies or street crime under the iron fist of communism. We were allowed to go anywhere we wanted in Moscow and Lenningrad but of course we had KGB agents walking behind us. They were great though because they kept us from getting lost. One was nice enough to pull some strings and get us into the Bolshoi Ballet and tickets were hard to get. Breznev wanted to impress us Americans I guess.

The communist free Russia is scarier to visit than the old USSR. Not that I'm saying communism is great but you could walk anywhere in Moscow or Lenningrad in those days and feel safe.

Night and day, huh?

[MAPRamone]

Originally posted by Nitro Express
No shit. I've been to Russia twice. Once in 1978 when it was part of the USSR and in 1995. Put it this way, there were no pickpocketing gypsies or street crime under the iron fist of communism. We were allowed to go anywhere we wanted in Moscow and Lenningrad but of course we had KGB agents walking behind us. They were great though because they kept us from getting lost. One was nice enough to pull some strings and get us into the Bolshoi Ballet and tickets were hard to get. Breznev wanted to impress us Americans I guess.

The communist free Russia is scarier to visit than the old USSR. Not that I'm saying communism is great but you could walk anywhere in Moscow or Lenningrad in those days and feel safe.

That's because the criminals weren'r roaming the streets, they were in charge. Hell i agree that in the way you describe USSR was better than Russia. However that certainly doesn't mean there were less crimes being committed. The crimes then were committed by USSR government sanctioned criminals away from the streets and away from your eyes.

[Nitro Express]

Originally posted by MAPRamone
That's because the criminals weren'r roaming the streets, they were in charge. Hell i agree that in the way you describe USSR was better than Russia. However that certainly doesn't mean there were less crimes being committed. The crimes then were committed by USSR government sanctioned criminals away from the streets and away from your eyes.

Yup. We were getting a tightling controlled show. One thing they couldn't hide was all the drunks. I'm glad I got to see it before the wall fell. Not too many Americans got to see the USSR up close and personal. I smuggled some rubles out and some Russian medals I traded bubble gum for. All taboo in the day.

I thought I really had something now you can buy that stuff in any army surplus store or coin shop. But in the lates 70's, it was some rare shit. LOL!

[smithcreww]

party party party, it don't matter where.

[Seshmeister]

Not Finland but close enough.:)

The boss at a Russian coal mine is being interviewed about accusations that his men are drinking while working which he denies...

Then Golden Awe appears in the background...

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/yhuNKKO4OTE"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/yhuNKKO4OTE" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

[Nitro Express]

Yo! Party at the coal mine!

[Viking]

A population of 5.2 million drank 14.5 million gallons of pure grain in a year? Holy shit. That stuff will make you go blind, then your weiner falls off in the toilet. :p

[Golden AWe]

Originally posted by Seshmeister
Not Finland but close enough.:)

The boss at a Russian coal mine is being interviewed about accusations that his men are drinking while working which he denies...

Then Golden Awe appears in the background...


HAHA!!

Well our hockey team from up north won the third national gold in three years...who says I cun't celebrate?

[jharp84]

Nobody ever told me I had FINISH blood in my genetics??