The liver is an amazing organ that performs all sorts of wonderful tasks for the body every day. It produces certain chemicals that are essential everyday living and breaks down other chemicals into forms that the body is able to use. Another vital task that the liver performs daily is the neutralization of harmful chemicals and filtering them out of the body. However if over time the liver has too many toxins to handle it is possible to get liver damage. One of the most dangerous toxins to the liver is alcohol.
Over a period of time a person can fall prey to what’s known as alcoholic liver disease from the consumption of too much alcohol. It is not known as to why some heavy drinkers get alcoholic liver disease and others do not. Alcoholic liver disease is sometimes found in even moderate drinkers. It is known that women are usually at higher risk for this disease and genetics may play a factor as well. At Narconon the histories and effects vary person to person so no one should take a chance.
THREE STAGES OF ALCOHOLIC LIVER DISEASE
STAGE ONE
Alcoholic liver disease has three stages. The first is fatty liver disease. Fatty liver disease is where large vacuoles of fat are accumulated in liver cells. Although the cause of fatty liver disease is usually caused by consuming large amounts of alcohol, there can be other causes to this disease as well, including obesity, diabetes and a number of others. Fatty liver disease is reversible as long as the cause of the fatty liver is eliminated. If one develops fatty liver disease from drinking alcohol obviously abstaining from alcohol would be recommendable and in most cases that is the only treatment needed for the reversal of this disease. Medications may need to be prescribed for this cessation because, sometimes, someone with a fatty liver will experience withdrawal symptoms from alcohol. If severe, these withdrawal symptoms can be life threatening.
STAGE TWO
The second stage of alcoholic liver disease is alcoholic hepatitis or steatohepatitis. Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver. At first many of the symptoms of this disease are not noticeable but as it progresses symptoms tend to become more and more severe. The first symptom usually starts as a feeling of malaise. If not treated this can progress to liver enlargement, accumulation of fluid in the abdomen (ascites), elevated liver enzymes that be detected via blood test, and jaundice. Jaundice is caused by elevated levels of bilirubin in the blood. In mild cases of alcoholic hepatitis the only treatment is for the patient to quit drinking, in severe cases the patient may be treated with glucocorticoids which are a class of hormonal steroids. This second stage of alcoholic liver disease is again completely reversible, usually with little more needed than abstaining from alcohol. There are some herbs and supplements that natural medicine practitioners say can help reduce inflammation in the liver. One is milk thistle. Another is SAMe. SAMe is naturally produced in the liver and some believe an alcoholic liver does not produce as much as a healthy liver so taking a SAMe supplement will help liver function. There are not been enough clinical studies done on these, however, to conclude the effectiveness. Also it may be recommended that the patient be referred to a nutritionist as many alcoholics suffer from mal-nutrition. Heavy alcohol consumption can retard the absorption of some vitamins and mineral. Alcohol can also suppress the appetite so the alcoholic may not be eating the foods that he or she needs in the daily required amounts. Often an over the counter multi vitamin is recommended and can also help. Again one should consult with ones doctor before starting any new supplement to make sure their interaction with any previously before prescribed drug are safe.
STAGE THREE
The third stage of alcoholic liver disease is known as cirrhosis. Cirrhosis is where healthy liver tissue is replaced by scar tissue. If it progresses it will lead to liver failure. A liver that has cirrhosis in advanced stages is shrunken in size, nodular and firm to the touch. There is no cure for advanced cirrhosis. The only treatment is to stop further spreading of the scar tissue and in advanced cases where liver failure is imminent the only option is liver transplant. A liver transplant is a very tedious complicated operation. There is a long waiting list for people waiting for matching livers. The donor liver must be healthy and of compatible blood types with the recipient. Most donor livers come from cadavers, however there is a new technique these days where a piece of a liver is taken from a healthy live compatible donor and transplanted in the recipient. Usually about seventy percent of the healthy persons liver is removed and put into the cavity where the recipients cirrhotic liver was removed. The donors liver should grow back to full size and volume within four to six months post-surgery. The recipient’s portion of the liver will also grow back to full size; however it does take more time for this happen.
Narconon drug rehab provides effective treatment for alcoholism.
There is some controversy on performing a liver transplant on someone with alcoholic liver disease because one, it is felt the alcoholic did this to themselves and because there are such long waiting lists for healthy livers there are people that are more deserving to receive livers. Second, what’s not to say that the alcoholic will not just mistreat their new liver and end up in the same position once again? Overall the need for liver transplant should be avoided if at all possible because although advancements have been made in the surgery, life expectancy for someone who does not have a liver transplant because it is not needed is much greater than it is for someone who does receive a liver transplant due to cirrhosis. It is said that alcoholic liver disease is the number one preventable cause for the need of a liver transplant.
If someone has an alcohol problem it can very difficult to quit. However, objectively if the alcoholism leads to liver disease, it seems it would be much easier to seek the necessary treatment to quit drinking than it would be to suffer from the horrendous effects of alcoholic liver disease. If someone has been diagnosed with alcoholic liver disease they should be encouraged to precede with the necessary treatment for alcoholism before the conditions gets to a point where it is irreversible. There are many resources available.
The worst thing is to delay taking action. It is possible to recover from alcoholism and its dastardly effects.
