SCOTLAND is one of the worst regions in the UK for binge drinking, with research suggesting increasing numbers of Scots are taking part in excessively heavy drinking sessions.
New figures show that more than a third of people north of the border took part in binge drinking in 2013 compared to just 15 per cent across the UK as a whole.
While the percentage of people drinking excessively - more than 12 units of alcohol in one sitting for men and nine for women - in the week before they completed the survey increased in Scotland from 10 per cent in 2012 to 13 per cent in 2013.
However the country fared well in the area of non-drinkers, with more than one in five people (21 per cent) reporting they are teetotal - making Scotland the fourth best area in the UK.
Barbara O'Donnell, deputy chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, said the level of binge drinking demonstrated the need to introduce minimum pricing on alcohol.
She said: "It is concerning that more people report binge drinking in Scotland compared with other regions.
"Scotland also has the highest rate of alcohol-related deaths in Britain which is why we need minimum pricing.
"A minimum unit price of 50p will make cheap, strong alcohol less affordable to the vulnerable, younger and heavier drinkers who are more likely to drink it and suffer the consequences.
"Regularly drinking too much increases the risk of cancer, liver damage and heart disease, and binge drinking is associated with additional health risks like accidental injury."
Across the UK, the Office for National Statistics data showed increasing numbers of young people are going without alcohol, with the number of teetotal 16 to 24-year-olds increasing from 19 per cent in 2005 to 27 per cent in 2013.
The UK-wide level of binge drinking also fell from 18 per cent to 15 per cent over this period, although there has been little change since 2011.
The ONS report said the drop in drinking between 2005 and 2013 was "a result of changes among younger adults, with little or no change in older groups".
Ms O'Donnell added: "It is encouraging to see that people are choosing to drink less alcohol, less often, and that it's young people who are primarily responsible for this change."
Women who live with dependent children are more likely to be teetotal (27 per cent of those polled) and least likely to binge-drink (14 per cent), while men who do not live with children are least likely to avoid drinking (17 per cent) and most likely to binge (24 per cent).
The figures also show there is a higher proportion of teetotallers in London (32 per cent) than anywhere else in the UK.
Pregnant women were more than three times as likely to be teetotallers as other women (72 per cent compared with 22 per cent), while expectant mothers were also less likely to have drunk alcohol in the week before the survey - fewer than a tenth, compared with more than half of other women.
A spokesman for the Portman Group, which represents alcohol producers, said: "It is welcome news that binge drinking continues to decline, particularly among young people, and more people are drinking within guidelines.
"This week official statistics have also shown an 18 per cent decline in alcohol-related violent crime in just one year, and the alcohol-related death rate fell to its lowest level since 2000.
"These positive trends are part of a decade-long culture change around our improving relationship with alcohol in this country.
"But alcohol-related harms still remain and some local areas suffer much more than others.
"The best way to support these communities is to get local businesses, police, local authorities and health services working together to improve town centres, tackle harmful drinking and make our high streets safer places to enjoy."
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