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Nearly 1,000 minnesotans died from alcohol consumption in 2020, with the COVID-19 pandemic likely playing a role in the increased number of alcohol-related deaths.
That’s according to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), which released preliminary data on last year’s preventable deaths from alcohol use on Thursday.
MDH says 992 people died from alcohol consumption last year in 2020, with preliminary data suggesting that factors linked to the pandemic “may have fueled a decades-long trend of increasing alcohol-related deaths in Minnesota.”
“The death of so much Minnesota from alcohol is tragic and preventable,” said Minnesota Health Commissioner Jan Malcolm. “Unfortunately, the pandemic has amplified some of the root causes of substance use and substance use disorders, such as social isolation, job losses and lack of access to treatment.
“In response, we need to strengthen our communities’ overall opportunities for connectedness and financial security, as well as specific evidence-based community strategies to reduce excessive alcohol consumption.”
From 2000 to 2010, the number of deaths entirely attributable to alcohol has increased by a third. And they more than doubled between 2010 and 2020.
Minnesota Department of Health
MDH says that deaths from alcohol use in 2020 reflected similar trends in recent years until June, when the number of alcohol-related deaths began to accelerate. That acceleration is believed to be due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In 2020, we saw that after May, the number of alcohol-related deaths remained high and 171 more Minnesota Minnesota died in 2020 compared to 2019, which is a bigger jump than the trend leading up to the pandemic,” said Kari Gloppen, MDH alcohol epidemiologist. . “Studies show that excessive drinking affects your brain, heart, liver, digestion and even your immune system. Alcohol is also a carcinogen that has been linked to several cancers.”
MDH
MDH says the preliminary data underestimates the impact of alcohol use on deaths in Minnesota, because it includes only deaths that are entirely attributable to alcohol (only deaths that would not have happened had it not been for alcohol) and none partly to alcohol attributable causes of death. (when alcohol is one of many factors contributing to a person’s death).
These deaths are preventable, MDH says, noting that a task force has recommended several strategies to reduce excessive alcohol consumption. Among them: increase the price of alcohol; regulate the number and concentration of places in a community that sell alcohol; consistent enforcement of laws prohibiting the sale of alcohol to minors; electrical screening and brief intervention to reduce excessive alcohol consumption.