Known in particular for its tradition of beer drinking, Germany is one of the world's top 25 countries when it comes to alcohol consumption. But who's at the top of the list?
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Warmuth
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The roughly 11.4 liters (6.25 pints) of pure alcohol consumed on a per capital annual basis by people older than 15 puts Germany at 23rd place among the 194 World Health Organization (WHO) members studied for the agency's annual report on health statistic.
The average pure alcohol consumption worldwide stood at 6.4 liters, with significant variation across countries.
Lithuanians drink the most, according to WHO, at 18.2 liters of pure alcohol per year, followed by Belarus (16.4), the Republic of Moldova (15.9), the Russian Federation (13.9), and Romania and the Czech Republic (tied with 13.7).
German drinkers rank close behind their counterparts in France, where per capita alcohol consumption is 11.7 liters, and ahead of Slovenia (11.3). With annual consumption of 0.1 liter per capita each, Mauritania and Libya tied as the world's least-boozy countries.
Overall, WHO said treatment for alcohol and drug-use disorders worldwide was "inadequate."
Smoking
Smoking related deaths remain a leading health concern, with 1.1 billion people smoking tobacco. In a positive trend, 80 percent of the 180 countries that signed onto WHO's tobacco convention have strengthened tobacco laws and regulations.
This year's WHO study was part of broader statistical research focused on the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, a set of internationally agreed targets adopted in 2015 to track issues such as health, climate, sanitation and economic inequality.
More generally, the WHO found that maternal and newborn death rates have declined. However, the 2015 global neonatal mortality rate remained relatively high, at 19 deaths per 1,000 live births; the death rate for children younger than 5 stood at 43 per 1,000 live births. About 830 women died every day due to complications of pregnancy or childbirth in 2015, the WHO found.
After death by car accidents, suicide came as the second leading cause of death by injury at 800,000 cases.
'Significant strides'
Improved collection of statistics allowed authorities to register 27 million of the world's 56 million estimated deaths in 2015 with a cause, compared with only about a third in 2005. The WHO reported that several countries, including China and Turkey, had made "significant strides" in data collection. Iran now records 90 percent of deaths with details of their causes - up from just 5 percent in 1999.
Though things have improved significantly in recent years, many countries still do not routinely collect high-quality health data, Marie-Paule Kieny, the WHO's assistant director-general for health systems and innovation, said in a statement. "If countries don't know what makes people get sick and die, it's a lot harder to know what to do about it," she said.
In other findings, the WHO reported an estimated 2.1 million new HIV infections in 2015 - 35 percent fewer than in 2000. Researchers also found an estimated 212 million malaria cases globally in 2015; about 60 percent of the population at risk of the mosquito-borne disease had access to an insecticide-treated net 2015, a significant improvement from 34 percent in 2010.
10 of the world's strongest beers
Munich celebrates its strong beer festival, the Starkbierfest, over the next several weeks. Here's a tour of beers that have pushed the alcohol by volume limits of the popular beverage.
Image: Brewmeister
Samuel Adams Utopias - 28%
Inside this ceramic bottle made to look like a copper brewing kettle is a beer aged for up to 22 years in sherry, brandy, cognac, bourbon and scotch casks. The Boston-based brewer Samuel Adams releases new batches of the strong brew every two years. With its suggested retail price of $200 (about 190 euros), this sought-after strong ale is the most expensive beer in the United States.
Image: Samuel Adams
BrewDog Tactical Nuclear Penguin - 32%
The Scotland-based brewery BrewDog has been setting records for years; when it was released in 2009, this was the world's strongest beer. Imperial stout is frozen, then the frozen liquids are removed to leave behind more alcohol - inspiring the name. It's to be enjoyed in small servings, just like "a fine whisky, a Frank Zappa album or a visit from a friendly yet anxious ghost," its creators say.
Image: BrewDog
Struise Black Damnation VI - Messy - 39%
De Struise Brouwers is a Belgian microbrewery. Their Black Damnation series is made from a dark Russian imperial stout beer, and among their different brews, VI - Messy is the strongest, with 39% ABV. It has never been released commercially, but connoisseurs who've tasted it at beer festivals say it still actually tastes like a real beer, compared to other very strong brews on this list.
Image: De Struise Brouwers
Schorschbräu Schorschbock 40 - 40%
Competing against BrewDog, the German brewery Schorschbräu was one of the two serious contestants in the arms race to create the world's strongest beer. It had already demonstrated its will to push the limits of beer with its Schorschbock 31%, an Eisbock stronger than any other beer available when it was released in 2008. Their 40% version was brewed at the end of 2009, beating BrewDog's Penguin.
Image: Schorschbräu
BrewDog Sink the Bismarck! - 41%
BrewDog released this even stronger beer a few months later, in 2010. In a clear reference to its German competitor, it was named after the Nazis' largest battleship. It is described by BrewDog as a "quadruple IPA that contains four times the hops, four times the bitterness and frozen four times." At a 100 euros ($105) a bottle, it's also at least 40 times more expensive than a conventional beer.
Image: BrewDog
BrewDog The End of History - 55%
Aiming to end the battle for the world's strongest beer with this 55% blond Belgian ale, BrewDog also added a controversial visual touch to The End of History by encasing each beer in preserved roadkill. Only 12 bottles were initially made in 2010. New editions were released for a 2016 crowdfunding campaign. Supporters who invested $20,000 in the company were rewarded with this collector's item.
Image: BrewDog
Schorschbräu Schorschbock 57 - 57%
Schorschbräu upgraded to a Schorschbock 43% in 2010 and retaliated with a yet stronger beer in 2011, the Schorschbock 57. The German brewer claims it would be impossible to reach a higher ABV without violating Germany's 500-year-old Beer Purity Law, which they apply in their creations. Only 36 bottles of this beer were initially made, each costing 200 euros (about $210).
Image: Schorschbräu
't Koelschip Start the Future - 60%
Dutch brewer 't Koelschip, which translates to "the refrigerated ship," has also created a few ultra-strong beers. This one was released a month after The End of History - its name, Start the Future, was an obvious reference to its predecessor. The limited batch was also reasonably priced: 35 euros a pop was a bargain compared to the 750 euros for each bottle of BrewDog's dead squirrel creations.
Image: Koelschip
Brewmeister Armageddon - 65%
Another Scottish brewery, Brewmeister, tried to claim the title of the world's strongest beer by releasing a line called Armageddon in 2012. However, lab tests demonstrated that ethanol - pure alcohol - had been added to the product. It has since been removed from Brewmeister's lineup.
Image: Brewmeister
Brewmeister Snake Venom - 67.5%
In 2013, Brewmeister replaced its previous strongest beer, Armageddon, with the stomach-burning Snake Venom. One bottle is equivalent to drinking 15 shots of hard liquor. A label on the bottle recommends not exceeding 35 milliliters in one sitting. Not for purists, this beer is considered unratable by the site RateBeer as the Scottish brewer also admitted to correcting its ABV with pure alcohol.
