Consultants from Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Castlebar told the Oireachtas committee how teenagers aged between the ages of 12 and 15 were arriving in A&E departments in a comatose state as a result of alcohol.
They said that the problem was particularly prevalent in girls and young women, most of whom are under the influence of large quantities of spirits, which are usually consumed in the form of alcopops
Dr Mary Houlihan of the Sexual Assault Centre in Dublin's Rotunda Hospital, said 60% of women and young girls presenting at the centre had alcohol in their system.
Dr Chris Luke from the Mercy Hospital in Cork, said the 'date-rape' drug, 'Rohypnol' was an urban myth, and that drink was usually to blame.
