The Scottish executive is set to launch a major advertising campaign warning of the dangers of binge drinking.

The £1.5 million initiative - which includes television, radio and billboard adverts - is being launched next month as part of the executive's plan for tackling alcohol problems.

Alcohol-related problems are estimated to cost Scotland up to £1 billion annually.

The target group of 18 to 35-year-olds are being warned of the dangers of binge drinking in an effort to change what the executive describes as "the country's deep-seated cultural attitudes towards alcohol".

Speaking in Glasgow, deputy health minister Mary Mulligan said the trend towards binge drinking among young Scots was "worrying".

"Drinking in moderation is compatible with a healthy lifestyle and does not cause a problem for most people. However, what we are increasingly seeing - and what the plan for action is seeking to address - are worrying trends in excessive and harmful drinking," she said.

"Next month, we will be launching a well-researched campaign which will aim to challenge the myth that binge drinking is harmless fun, clever or 'cool'."

The campaign will focus on getting individuals who drink excessively to think about the effects on themselves, those around them and on society as a whole.

"I know that many people would think twice about sinking five or six drinks each night of the working week, yet many young people appear less concerned about binge-drinking on a Friday or Saturday night.

"Drinking patterns which can lead them to behave in a completely uncharacteristic manner, ranging from making a fool of themselves, to going home with someone they don't know or becoming involved in a bar-room brawl," said Mulligan.

She denied the executive was "anti-alcohol" but said that drinking too much did not constitute "harmless fun".

"Alcohol problems are costing Scotland at least £1 billion a year - including around £96 million to the NHS. And alcohol contributes to public safety, crime and economic productivity problems," she said.

"The message must be clear that drinking until you are drunk is not funny, its not clever and its not acceptable."

Jack Law, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, said he hoped the ad campaign would "go a long way towards tackling the problems of binge drinking".