Drinking alcohol every day: How unhealthy really is it?

In the first gear weeks of lockdown, sales of alcohol rose by 22 % in the UK. The nation was coming to terms with the alien concept of being locked indoors with little else to do, and for many people that meant turning to alcohol to while away the hours. I am one of those people. I ‘ve gone from being the person who drinks at weekends ( all right, all weekend ) plus the odd weeknight ( but only when I ‘m out ), to being a regular on Majestic.co.uk, stocking up my wine rack with a fresh batch of bottles every calendar month. Oh, and the crates of beer and bottles of gin that immediately appear to be commonplace on my shopping list. Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, drinking habits have largely changed. We ‘ve transformed from a society known for gorge drink, to one where regular, sustained alcohol consumption is the norm. It gets to 6pm, I shut my laptop, and I pour myself a glaze of wine. That ‘s my newfangled routine, and I quite like it. Research carried out by Alcohol Change UK suggests I ‘m not the only one, with around one in five drinkers ( 21 % ) surveyed saying they had been drinking more frequently since lockdown. If that design is reflected across the whole nation, it would suggest liquor inhalation is on the up for around 8.6 million adults in the UK.

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But how bad for you actually is this new horizontal surface of sustain drink ? What ‘s worse ? Drinking several days ‘ worth of alcohol in one go at the weekend but then giving your liver-colored a few days off ? Or drinking little but much and never giving your body a break ? I decided to face up to it and ask a doctor. The bottom line is : neither extreme is ideal. “The recommendations are to drink less than 14 units a week limit, spread out over different days, and to have 3 or more drink-free days during the week,” explains Dr William Alazawi, a adviser Hepatologist at the London Digestive Centre depart of HCA Healthcare UK. Binge drinking normally means drinking more than 6 units in a single school term for women or 8 units for men. But, the doctor of the church points out : “ The liver-colored processes alcohol at the like speed no matter how much you drink. indeed when people binge-drink, the alcohol and its toxic effects hang around for longer, causing wrong and ignition. ”

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He explains : “ When we drink a small measure of alcohol, the liver processes it and breaks it down into harmless substances. But drinking excessively much alcohol can overwhelm these processes, leading to a build up of fat in the liver-colored, causing wrong and finally preventing the liver from carrying out critical functions in the soundbox. ” But if you take an alternate overture, drinking less than the weekly terminus ad quem but not leaving yourself any alcohol-free days, you ‘re besides harming your body. This is because if the liver is constantly exposed to the toxic effects of alcohol, it ‘s under pressure to process it each day, a well as all the other things the harmonium has to do. “ The calories in the alcoholic drinks ( which besides much contain sugars ) can foster damage the liver, equally well as lend to weight gain, ” Dr Alazawi adds.

How much alcohol is too much?

besides much alcohol can, in the long operate, precede to liver damage. “ The liver has a reputation for being able to regenerate itself and this means that many of us assume it is a absolvitory organ. however, if the liver is damaged repeatedly or over a long period of clock time, then it can reach the limits of this regeneration, leading to liver scar, ” says the expert. It ‘s not possible to know what each person ‘s risk of liver damage is, because the affect of alcohol is repaired differently in different people – depending on genes, our diet, our behavior, and our environment. however, the official NHS guidance across the board is that we should keep our alcohol consumption below 14 units per workweek, spreading our toast over at least 3 days in the week, with several alcohol-free days.

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“ One unit is the same as half a pint of fallible bitter, a small glass of moo intensity wine or a single measure of a intent in a public house or measure, ” explains Dr Alazawi. “ If you ’ rhenium drinking a drink with a higher share of alcohol in it : a stronger lager, cider or a broad bodied wine, then it will have more units. ”

Is drinking at home worse for you than drinking when you’re out?

As the doctor of the church has laid out, neither orgy drink when you ‘re out nor suffer consumption of smaller quantities of alcohol at home are recommended, because both provide challenges to the soundbox. “ Whether you drink alcohol at base or in the public house, it gets broken down in the liver and can damage the liver in the same way, ” points out the sophisticate. But drink at home, as has become sol platitude over the last three months of lockdown, does have its specific risks. “ Drinking at home might mean you drink more because you serve yourself more generous amounts, because you have lots of cans or bottles in the firm or because you don ’ t have to get home at the end of the flush, ” notes Dr Alazawi. “ It might besides be easier to drink at home at times of the day when you wouldn ’ thyroxine normally drink if you were out of the house. ” then there ‘s the impact drinking regularly at family can have on your diet ; you become more tire because you sleep less well after alcohol, drink less body of water, and frequently do n’t feel comparable doing vitamin a much exercise. “ This might lead to you putting on weight, which can lead to a build up up of fatten in the liver just like alcohol can, making the liver damage bad, ” says the sophisticate. One big, wide, unhealthy lap .

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What other ways can drinking harm the body?

We know excessively much alcohol is bad for your liver. If you get to the luff of drinking so much that you develop liver scar, you must ensure you reduce the amount you drink ( or stop drinking wholly ), a well as adopt a healthy diet and take regular drill. But it ‘s not just the liver that ‘s vulnerable to the toxic effects of drink. “ drinking in excess besides affects a person ‘s demeanor, emotions and judgment which can be harmful in different ways, ” says Dr Alazawi. “ Some people can become lower if they drink and more so if they drink entirely. particularly in these times of lockdown, we need to be mindful of our own climate and mental health arsenic well as that of those around us, ” he advises. If you ’ ra feel low, it can be helpful to talk about your mood with family, friends or even seek help oneself. The NHS has a compass of helplines and support groups that can offer expert advice .

Signs of liver damage (for which you should seek medical attention):

• Yellowing of the skin and eyes (jaundice)
• Abdominal swelling
• Itchy skin
• Dark urine
• Pale stool
• Fatigue
• Nausea
• Abdominal pain

If you are worry about your liver or about your general physical or genial health, seek out checkup advice. Dr William Alazawi is a adviser Hepatologist at the London Digestive Centre part of HCA Healthcare UK. Follow Cat on Instagram. Like this article ? Sign up to our newsletter to get more articles like this delivered true to your inbox. SIGN UP

Catriona Harvey-Jenner
Features Editor
Cat is Cosmopolitan UK ‘s features editor program covering women ‘s issues, health and current affairs.

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source : https://nutritionline.net
Category : Healthy