Alcohol may help you forget about life's worries, but it may create something new for your health.
A study published Thursday revealed a disturbing trend. The number of alcohol-related liver and pancreatic problems has increased disproportionately among adolescents and young adults, particularly women.
“These are kids who ultimately don't really understand the possible complications.” Dr. Shari Shefflinthe director of the Pediatric Liver Disease Program at Cohen Children's Medical Center, told the post. “Obviously, we don't encourage alcohol consumption at all, but [also] It's so scary that I teach them to learn their limits. ”
The study, conducted by researchers at Queens University, Ontario, Canada, analyzed hospital visits and hospitalizations for alcohol-induced organ damage over nearly 20 years, focusing on ages 13-39.
They identified 11,508 cases, but complications are more related to the pancreas, which is more common than liver problems. 29% vs 19% respectively.
Of pancreatic-related cases, a staggering 92% were acute pancreatitis, a potentially fatal condition with pain that could lead to severe complications if inflammation spreads to other organs.
Young people with alcohol-related pancreatic problems were also male, living in urban areas and required hospitalization.
Young men still constitute the majority of hospitalizations for alcohol-related liver disease and pancreatitis, but researchers found that the proportion of these conditions increased more rapidly among younger women.
In fact, the incidence of pancreatitis in women is increasing by 12% per year compared to just 7% in men. Liver complications also increase rapidly at the rate of women, up 9% per year compared to 6% in men.
Meanwhile, other alcohol-related organ complications saw a slight decrease in men, a 1% decrease per year, while the proportion of women increased by 2% per year.
“Our findings suggest that gastrointestinal complications from alcohol are increasing. [adolescents and young adults] In the study published in the Jama Network Open Journal, researchers wrote it.
In the United States, alcohol is often deeply embedded in socio-culture. Almost 90% of American adults report drinking alcoholic beverages at some point in their lives, and 55% say they have drunk their drinks within the past month. According to Yale Medicine.
Alcohol consumption, especially heavy drinking – has skyrocketed during the coronavirus pandemic. The lockdown and social isolation were due to many Americans feeling depressed and uneasy.
“At this point, it's very easy for an adolescent population to get alcohol, so there's no need to worry about how they got it,” Shefflin said. “It's like, 'Okay, what are you doing if you get it?” There are so many factors to understand how much risk they can be at risk when they're drinking, and they're just not mature enough to understand those components yet. ”
Moderate drinking is generally safe, but excessive consumption can increase your risk Scope of serious health problems. Previous studies have shown that even when men and women drink the same amount, they metabolize alcohol in different ways.
“Women can't drink as much as men can.” Dr. James BurtonMedical Director of Liver Transplants at the University of Colorado Hospital at the Anschutz Medical Campus; I told Uchealth. “A moderate drinking for women is one drink a day, but for men it can be considered two drinks a day.”
Even if women drink less alcohol than men, studies suggest that they are more likely to be more susceptible to harmful effects of alcohol, including liver disease.
“A woman's body contains proportionately less water and more fat than a man's,” Burton said. “Water dilutes alcohol, and fat retains it. Women also have less alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzyme that breaks down alcohol.”
Alcohol-related liver disease is usually more common in men, The gap is narroweryoung women are pushing for an increase in deaths.
Treatment often includes abstinence, dietary changes, medication, and in severe cases liver transplantation. Burton said the liver transplant demographic has changed in recent years from most men in the 50s and 60s to younger women under the age of 40 and people under the age of 40, particularly following the pandemic.
“That's a big problem. About 80% of the transplant assessments we do every week are young and young people with alcohol-related hepatitis and cirrhosis from alcohol,” he said.
The number of people nationwide who need liver transplants for alcohol-related reasons jumped from 4,087 in 2019 to 5,144 in 2021. The number of men on the waiting list increased by 22%, while the list of women increased by 35%. According to the Denver Post.
The survival rate after implantation is hovering 86%, about 86% after 1 year, 78% after 3 years and 72% after 5 years, but these results are dependent on the individual situation. Government data.
On Wednesday, the Post broke the news that former child star Michel Tratchenberg had died at the age of 39. The cause of death remains unconfirmed, but sources have revealed that the “Gossip Girl” star had undergone a liver transplant within the last year.
