Heavy alcohol intake increases death risk
ALCOHOL damage is not always visible but often comes in stages. There is no safe drinking level according to government recommendations, but 10 to 20 years of regularly drinking more than 14 units a week can result in a number of illnesses and more serious health problems.
Alcohol can bring about a number of health risks and serious illnesses.
Regularly drinking more than 14 units a week can increase the risk of you damaging your health.
Under UK government recommendations, 14 units it the equivalent of six pints of average-strength beer or 10 small glasses of low-strength wine.
There is no “safe” level of drinking, but there are recommendations for what to do to keep health risks from alcohol to a low level if you drink most weeks.
Men and women are advised not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis, drinking should be spread over three or more days if you regularly drink as much as 14 units a week, and if you want to cut down you should try to have several drink-free days each week.
So what can happen if you regularly drink more than the recommended units each week?
LIVER damage, or liver disease as it’s also referred, is commonly caused by obesity, an undiagnosed hepatitis infection and alcohol misuse. Drinking too much alcohol can lead to a condition called alcohol-relate cirrhosis and serious complications can occur. But what counts as excessive drinking and what’s the recommended number of units of alcohol that should be consumed in a day?
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Liver damage: Exceeding a particular amount of alcohol a day can lead to organ failure
Liver disease that’s been caused by excess alcohol intake has several stages of severity.
There are three main stages - alcoholic fatty liver disease, alcoholic hepatitis, and cirrhosis.
Cirrhosis can eventually lead to liver failure, where your liver stops working, which can be fatal.
It usually takes years for the condition to reach this stage, but there are a number of symptoms to watch out for to indicate this has happened - there are two you should be wary of when you go to the toilet.
Dark urine and pale-coloured stools or very dark/black tarry stools are two indicators of severe liver damage, according to the British Liver Trust. These usually suggest the liver is struggling to function.