A new study has found that the over consumption of alcohol is a factor in almost half of the deaths of Russia's working-aged men.

The researchers say heavy alcohol use, including the ingestion of alcohol-based liquids not meant to be ingested, attributed to the deaths of nearly half of all working-aged men living in Izhevsk, Russia.

Hazardous drinking includes both excessive consumption of regular beverage-alcohol such as beer, wine, and spirits and the drinking of non-beverage alcohol such as colognes, medical tinctures and cleaning agents.

According to lead author Dr. David A. Leon, the life expectancy for men in Russia is already low at 59 years, and for reasons unknown there have been wide fluctuations in death rates over the last 20 years but it could be related to hazardous drinking.

The researchers had access to information on markers of problem drinking, frequency of alcohol consumption, education, and smoking for 1,468 cases and 1,496 controls.

Of the participants 751 cases were classed as problem drinkers or drank non-beverage alcohol, compared with 192 controls.

Even after adjustments were made for smoking and education over a 2-year time period the mortality odds ratio for these men, compared with those who either abstained or were non-problematic beverage drinkers, was much higher and 43% of deaths were attributable to hazardous drinking.

The deaths were all in men aged 25 “54 years and occurred between October 20th, 2003, and October 3rd, 2005.

The staple of many a Russian's diet, Vodka, is expensive and as a result many men to turn to cologne, medicinal tinctures, and cleaning agents as a way to get a quick buzz.

Other experts say beyond the fact that low carb diets help people lose weight quickly compared to other low fat diets, there is little merit in low carbohydrate diets which cut down on fruits and fibre such as in bread.

The Atkins diet has been lauded by many celebrities for helping them to stay slim but it demands a drastic reduction in carbohydrate intake, including foods such as potatoes, fresh dairy products and alcohol; but over a two week period the diet in most cases causes a huge drop in weight.

Carbohydrate levels are then supposed to be slowly increased over the following weeks but Professor Flint says many dieters are tempted to keep the level low, and thus create a greater likelihood of bowel cancer developing.

Other experts say the risk of bowel cancer increases when people eat a lot of animal fat and there was slow moving transit of food through the gut.

Experts recommend eating a healthy, balanced diet that is high in fibre, fruit and vegetables, and low in red and processed meat.