Anti-alcohol campaigners have warned that stringent police crackdowns and the many diversionary activities laid on to steer youngsters away from alcohol would never stop children “taking risks.”
They were commenting on the disclosure that the number of children being admitted to casualty in Dundee for drink-related problems has almost doubled in a year.
Just over 200 intoxicated teenagers were taken to Ninewells A&E in 2008/9, a figure that rose to 388 during the following 12 months.
Director of Tayside Council on Alcohol Frankie Claridge said, “My view is you will never stop under-age drinking.
“Young people’s lives are all about risk-taking. It’s on the job description of being young.”
The admission-a-day situation in Dundee is even more worrying when compared against the main hospitals in Grampian and the Highlands, both of which recorded declines in teen alcohol cases.
Dr Bill Morrison, of Ninewells A&E, said, “Dundee has a disturbing problem with alcohol with 80% of admissions on Friday and Saturday nights being alcohol-related.
“On occasion children as young as 10 have been hospitalised for boozing, and drunken 15 and 16-year-olds were a common sight.
“People seem to start drinking at an earlier age and that seems to be a big concern for the future.
“Consumption of alcohol is going up and the associated health problems are going up.
“Sometimes these young people will have fallen over and hurt themselves because of excess alcohol, or else they just need treatment because of the alcohol itself.”
The increase in Dundee comes despite initiatives undertaken by Tayside Police, its partner agencies and youth groups.
In a new attempt to combat the supply of drink to teenage tipplers, police have supplied off-licences in problem areas of Dundee with codes to “tag” bottles of wine, beer, cider and spirits, so if children are caught with them they can be traced to a specific store.