THE Lancashire Evening Telegraph's GP columnist today warned that children under 10 risk serious brain damage if they go on dangerous drink binges.

Dr Tom Smith said young people were not able to deal with a high concentration or volume of booze.

He said: "If someone under 10 is drinking alcohol then any small amount can really affect the liver.

"Under 10s are very sensitive to alcohol and are more likely to get ill from drinking than drunk.

"While the liver can recover from one incident the brain might not.

"It can really damage the brain and damage the brain cells quite badly.

"They can go into a coma and they can come back and not be the same person they were before they started drinking."

He said two glasses of sherry was enough to make a child of that age "very ill". Three glasses is the recommended daily intake for a grown male while two glasses is recommended for women.

Men are urged not to take more than 21 units a week, the equivalent of about 10 pints of beer, 10 double whisky or 21 small glasses of wine. Women are advised to drink less than 14 units a week.

He said young people aged 15 and under risked their health if they drank more than five units a week, or two-and-a-half-pints of beer.

But he said: "I would prefer it if they were given no alcohol at all. The liver is important to help young people grow, it should not given other jobs to do such as breaking down alcohol."

The Government and the drinks industry advises:

l Allow your child to have small amounts of alcohol and drink moderately yourself as this can have a positive effect.

l Do not imply that not drinking is wrong or odd.

l Do not use scare tactics such as discussing the long-term effects of alcohol such as cirrhosis.

l Encourage your child to take up interests - boredom is one of the major causes of underage drinking.

l Show an interest in how your child manages their money as alcohol is expensive to young people.

l Do not to give your children easy access to alcohol in the home.

l If your child collapses through drink make sure they are breathing by looking, listening and feeling for movement of the chest or abdomen.

l Try and keep them warm as a side effect of too much alcohol is hypothermia.

l Keep checking they have a clear airway and are still breathing properly until the ambulance arrives.