Alcohol abuse is drinking heavy amounts of alcohol over an extended amount of time. This will lead to the liver being damaged which is called liver cirrhosis. Too much alcohol over a period of time starts to overwork the liver and the strain ends up as liver disease. There are four different stages that happens which will end in liver cirrhosis beginning with fatty liver then hepatitis from alcohol toxins and into a fibrosis of the liver. Not everyone who suffers from liver disease is an alcohol drinker but those who do drink heavily are at a very high risk.
The unfortunate thing about spotting liver disease is it usually cannot be recognized until damage exists. Extended periods of heavy drinking makes the condition worse until the damage it has caused to the liver cannot be undone. Liver disease caused by alcohol can take years to happen, but when it does develop it seems to happen overnight. Women seem to be more at risk of this developing than do men.
The first recognizable stage of liver disease is fatty liver. Carbon dioxide and water along with fat are all the results of the process of metabolism. Fatty degeneration happens when fat in the liver has been stored. This is not a serious condition and it is treatable but if the drinking continues, the damage to the liver will begin to worsen.
If the drinking continues and the fatty liver is not treated, this then leads to the second stage which is alcoholic hepatitis. This is when the liver becomes inflamed and even though the effects of this are actually mild, it may develop into something that is very serious. This development happens quickly and it is possible there will be liver failure. Alcoholic hepatitis can be treated if the drinking stops but if the drinking continues there is a very high risk of liver cirrhosis.
When drinking is not stopped, the third stage of alcoholic liver disease will take over which is liver fibrosis. The liver will be trying to heal itself and in so doing will form scar tissue which is fibrous and intended to protect the cells of the liver from damage. Excessive amounts of scar tissue forms when the drinking is heavy. This condition can be stopped but only if the drinking is stopped altogether. If drinking continues this will get worse and end up in cirrhosis of the liver.
This is the final stage of alcoholic liver disease which is full-blown liver cirrhosis and is the direct result of alcohol abuse that continues for a long period of time. The liver forms nodules besides the scar tissue that exist instead of healthy cells in the liver. Now the liver cannot work normally and will eventually stop from functioning altogether. This is a serious, irreversible condition of the liver. There is only one way to prevent or arrest the development of this and that is to stop all consumption of alcohol.

Filed under: Effects Of Alcohol Abuse

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