Keeping It Up??

North Warwickshire town named as England's Viagra capital

A quiet market town nestled in the North Warwickshire countryside has won itself an unusual accolade, as the Viagra capital of England.

In Coleshill, which has a population of 6,343 and was once most famous as the home Brylcreem, there is little to belie the passions that run deep underneath the surface.
But NHS figures show that the town consumes anti-impotence drugs at a rate unrivalled elsewhere in England, according to the Sunday Times.
In 2012 in North Warwickshire, the town’s local district, 54.87 prescriptions were issued by GPs per 1,000 men, putting it way ahead of its nearest rival, Wychavon, in Worcestershire, with clocked up 42.66 prescriptions per 1,000 males.
One surgery in Coleshill had both the highest number of prescriptions for the region and the highest number per registered male patient.
The statistics, collected by the NHS, show that larger cities tend to have lower prescription rates, although this could be due to the fact that there are more opportunities to get the drugs privately.
The lowest rate was in the City of London.
The rates rise in rural areas and coastal towns - communities which have a larger proportion of older residents, suggesting that they are not letting their age get in the way of a good time.
Figures released in July showed that the NHS spending on Viagra has trebled in the decade to £30 million, with more prescriptions being issued in the North of the country.
But further analysis pinpointed Coleshill as a hot bed of Viagra use.
While some residents were surprised by the town’s new claim to fame, Mick Stanley, leader of North Warwickshire council, said: "We have to have something to do."
Derek Pickard, a North Warwickshire councillor and an expert on health matters, said: "I am not surprised. It's an interesting statistic and my guess is it is to do with age, or maybe we have some compliant GPs. It is a good afterdinner conversation point."
Viagra, Cialis and Levitra are the commonest medications for erectile dysfunction, but GPs restricted prescriptions after it became known as a party drug.
Dartford, Kent, takes third place in the Viagra table, with an average of 42.40 prescriptions per 1,000 males, followed by Hastings, East Sussex (41.15) and East Lindsey in Lincolnshire (39.68)
The City of London has the lowest average of 1.05 prescriptions per 1,000 adult males, closely followed by Tower Hamlets in the East End of London (1.45) and then Islington (3.17).
Outside of the capital, men in Cambridge had the fourth lowest usage (3.82), followed by Newcastle upon Tyne (3.9).