High Earners Drink More, Research Suggests

Those who earn more than £1,000 a week drink around 14.8 units a week, which is equivalent to 14 small glasses of wine or seven and a half pints of beer. Meanwhile, those earning up to £200 a week consume just 9.9 units.

People in managerial and professional jobs drink around 26 per cent more in a typical week than those in routine and manual worker households - 13.5 units a week compared to 10.7.

Julia Manning, chief executive of 2020health, said: "No one would question the need to tackle the UK's infamous binge drinking culture.

"What's worrying, however, is the way in which we overlook the habits of the silent majority who are slowly drinking themselves to death."

The new research also found that married people are less likely to show mild alcohol dependence than those who are single, separated or cohabiting (five per cent compared with between 12 and 13 per cent). 

The think-tank is now calling for universal alcohol screening at the age of 30. Other recommendations include making wine more readily available in half bottles to be shared by two people without going over the limit.

Experts recommend taking two or three consecutive days a week off alcohol to give your liver a break.