The number of people in Northern Ireland dying due to conditions caused by alcohol use has risen by more than 60% in a decade.
A total of 341 registered alcohol-specific deaths were recorded in 2023, according to the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA).
Its analysis is based on deaths related to conditions exclusively caused by alcohol use.
The stats exclude any death only partially attributed to the substance.
NISRA said the 341 registered deaths in 2023 specifically related to the use of alcohol accounted for 2% of all deaths that year.
It also found that almost two-thirds of those deaths were men, following a long-term trend.
The study indicated that alcohol-specific deaths in Northern Ireland have risen by over 65% between 2013 and 2023 – 66.5% were men.
Further data also showed that between 2013 and 2023, the alcohol-specific death rate for males increased by 35.7%, while the rate for women saw a 95.3% increase (from 6.4 per 100,000 to 12.5 per 100,000 population).
In 2023, the death rate per 100,000 people stood at 12.5 for females and 24.7 for males.
Those aged between 45 and 64 continued to be the more prevalent age bracket for all alcohol-specific deaths, accounting for 63.9% in 2023.
Since 2013, alcoholic liver disease, on average, made up two-thirds of alcohol-specific deaths, increasing from 69.4% in 2013 to 72.7% in 2023.
Mental and behavioural disorders due to use of alcohol have consistently accounted as the second most common cause of death, making up 16.1% of alcohol-specific deaths in 2023.
Regionally, the Belfast Local Government District (LGD) had the highest number of alcohol-specific deaths, with 77 in 2023.
This was followed by Derry City and Strabane LGD, with 49.
Ranking at the bottom, meanwhile, was the Fermanagh and Omagh LGD, with 10 deaths.
Between 2019 and 2023, the most deprived areas of Northern Ireland saw almost four times as many alcohol-specific deaths compared to the least deprived areas.
In October, Stormont’s Health Minister confirmed he was intending to bring legislation forward around the introduction of minimum unit pricing for alcohol.
At the time, Mike Nesbitt told the Health Committee: “Figures indicate alcohol misuse costs Northern Ireland up to £900m a year, never mind the devastating impact on individuals, families and communities and indeed the stress on the health service.
“In 2022, 356 people here died from alcohol-specific causes — that is the highest total on record,” he said.
Both Scotland and the Republic of Ireland have introduced minimum unit pricing on alcohol in recent years.