Alcohol hepatitis is one of the most common and harmful diseases related to your liver. It causes nasty inflammation in your liver and often results from drinking excessively.
Alcohol hepatitis is most commonly found among people who don’t control alcohol abuse and cannot give up that habit. Suppose you have been drinking heavily for many years. In that case, you are already exposed to the risk of getting alcohol hepatitis.
Even though alcohol is the most commonly known cause of this disease, some people don’t develop this disease under the influence of heavy drinking. But it doesn’t make any difference, and the danger it poses is still intact.
Even if you drink moderately, you are still vulnerable to alcoholic hepatitis and other related complications. Let’s get acquainted with the disease by knowing more in-depth nature of it.
Causes of Alcoholic Hepatitis
If you have alcoholic hepatitis, then your liver is severely damaged. It’s almost impossible to get your liver functioning properly once it crosses the threshold of reversible damage.
Medical services and communities worldwide are still trying to determine why the disease doesn’t affect some heavy drinkers at all but can be harsh to people who drink in moderate amounts. If you are wondering what causes alcoholic hepatitis, here are some of the leading causes of the disease.
This disease can occur when your body finds it difficult to process or break down alcohol that produces highly toxic chemicals that stay in your body for a long time. This can trigger chemicals that lead to inflammation and destroy your liver cells.
If the condition isn’t improved, the scars can replace your healthy liver tissues and meddle with your liver functions. Once the damage reaches its final stage, it is difficult to reverse scarring known as cirrhosis.
What Are the Risk Factors Involved?
The amount of excessive alcohol you consume is one of the major risk factors for dealing with alcoholic hepatitis. How much alcohol you consume regularly and for how long can be determined to calculate the risk factors involved in the disease.
But many other risk factors include genetic factors and obesity as well. Suppose you are slightly overweight and consume an excessive amount of alcohol. In that case, you are more prone to get affected by alcoholic hepatitis.
Gender may also be a factor in determining risk. Women seem to be at a higher risk of developing this disease because of how alcohol is processed.
The Significant Symptoms of Alcoholic Hepatitis
One of the earliest signs of alcoholic hepatitis is the yellowishness of your skin and eyes. You can notice the yellow tint in the whites of your eyes, similar to that of jaundice. People struggling with alcoholic hepatitis also tend to lose their appetite and suffer from repeated nausea and vomiting.
The abdominal tenderness seems to increase in the patients. You are also likely to have a consistent low-grade fever that refuses to leave. The constant feeling of fatigue and weakness is also one of the early symptoms of alcoholic hepatitis.
People with this disease are also likely to be malnourished if the liver is unable to break down the nutrients in their foods and drinks effectively.
Alcoholic Hepatitis Diagnosis
The first question your health care service provider might ask you regarding your alcoholic hepatitis situation is the amount of alcohol you consume. The consumption and frequency can help the doctors determine the disease at the initial level and evaluate it more appropriately.
Certain physical exams are also a part of the alcoholic hepatitis diagnosis. Your complete blood count will also be determined along with the liver function test.
You might also need to go through certain blood clotting tests to give the doctors a better idea of your situation. An abdominal CT scan might also be necessary to diagnose the disease in many cases. The specialist may also take an ultrasound of your liver to understand the complications.
Available Treatment
The prevention of the disease is always better than treating it. If you feel like you have been drinking excessively lately, then it’s your call to put a hold on it. If you cannot quit drinking at once, you should gradually do it.
You don’t want to be too late because once a considerable large amount of damage has occurred, it’s difficult to go back to the natural or well-functioning liver. Even if you already cross the threshold and the damage is a little bit too severe, you can always consider quitting drinking to prevent further harm to your liver.
You can also improve your diet and consume liver health supplements like Nutriplus LivHealth. Even if you don’t have the disease but are looking forward to strengthening your liver functions, Nutriplus LivHealth could be a perfect aid to your liver health. Keeping that in mind, you can also find out more about Nutriplus LivHealth on the official QNET India eStore.
Other Complications Linked to Alcoholic Hepatitis
Suppose the liver damage progress is into alcoholic hepatitis. In that case, the damage could last long enough and invite other complications. Some of these complications can be taken care of, while others will be life-threatening.
Cirrhosis of the liver is a situation where your healthy liver tissues are scarred and beyond repair. It may also lead to liver cancer. Amongst other complications related to your liver health, the final stage will be organ failure. If your liver fails, then that’s pretty much nothing you can do about it, and your kidneys will be directly affected too.
Conclusion
Alcoholic hepatitis can be a serious condition, but it can still be treated in time if you do something about it. The first thing you should do is quit drinking gradually and seek immediate medical attention, to begin with. A good diet, regular exercising and the consumption of the liver health supplement Nutriplus LivHealth would benefit you greatly!
