Aussies among heaviest drinkers in world

Australians are some of the heaviest drinkers in the world, drinking more than ten litres of pure alcohol per year, according to a new data.

The figures released by the World Health Organisation show Australians drink more pure alcohol per year than Americans, Canadians and the Japanese.

"Australians drink 10.6 litres of pure alcohol each year, much higher than the global average of 6.4 litres," according to the authors of the report.

Young Aussies aged between 15 and 19 were also more likely to binge drink with 38.9 per cent of the population in that cohort drinking to excess.

But in France the average person consumed more than 12 litres of pure alcohol a year, while in Russia the average was around 11.7 litres.