A new study shows that major consumers of alcohol suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure or a high -waist are up to twice as capable of developing liver disease such as liver steatosis.
- Large drinkers suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure or a high -waist tour are up to 2.4 times more likely to develop liver disease.
- On the other hand, a high level of triglycerides and a low HDL level displayed less significant correlations with liver disorders.
- The results do not mean that people who do not have diabetes, hypertension or a high size turn do not encourage risk of drinking large amounts of alcohol.
Why some big drinkers develop liver diseases such as liver steatosis, and others not, when they consume the same amount of alcohol? This is the question that researchers at the University of Southern California asked themselves.
The difference between these patients could reside in three well -known disorders: diabetes, hypertension and a high size. The team detailed its discovery in a study published in the review Gastroenterology and hepatology clinicalFebruary 3, 2025.
Hypertension, diabetes and waist tower: 3 risk factors for the liver of drinkers
To determine which risk factors predisposed the liver to the damage caused by alcohol, scientists have resumed data from a vast study on health and nutrition with more than 40,000 participants. During this work, excessive alcohol consumption corresponded to 1.5 glass per day for women (20 g) and two glasses per day for men (30 g). The waist was also noted. It was considered high beyond 88 cm for women and 101 for men.
The analyzes have shown that large diabetic drinkers or who had too large a size, were 2.4 times more likely to suffer from advanced liver disease. Participants who consumed a lot of alcohol diagnosed with hypertension was 1.8 times likely to develop liver disorders.
On the other hand, the other two risk factors studied – a high level of triglycerides and a low level of good cholesterol presented less significant correlations with liver diseases.
“The results identify a segment of the population at very high risk subject to liver disease and suggest that pre -existing health problems can have a significant impact on the way alcohol affects the liver”underlines Dr. Brian P. Lee, hepatologist and principal researcher of the study in a press release.
Alcohol and cardiometabolic disorders: a common track in the liver?
If the study highlighted the three risk factors cardiometabolic that can put the liver of drinkers in danger, it does not explain the origin of this link. However, Dr. Lee advanced a hypothesis. He supposes that “These conditions share a common route to the accumulation of fats in the liver which, when combined with additional fat deposits in the liver due to excess alcohol, can cause significant damage”.
If these results help to understand the differences observed between patients, the expert adds that at no time do they mean that people who do not present these three cardiometabolic disorders can consume large amounts of safe alcohol. “We know that alcohol is toxic to the liver and that all big drinkers are likely to develop advanced liver disease”he recalls.
According to the researcher and his team, the study could help healthcare professionals to identify and take care more quickly people at risk of developing dangerous liver damage.
