Obesity and alcohol 'raise risk of liver disease'

Obesity and alcohol 'raise risk of liver disease'

The combined effects of obesity and alcohol work together to raise the risk of liver disease in both men and women, new research suggests.

According to two studies published in the British Medical Journal, a combination of high body mass index and alcohol consumption significantly increases a person's chances of developing liver cirrhosis.

While alcohol has long been recognised as a major cause of the condition, evidence has only recently emerged of the threat posed by being overweight.

The latest studies showed that obese women drinking an average of two and a half drinks each day are almost twice as likely to develop cirrhosis than those of a healthy weight drinking the same levels of alcohol.

Meanwhile, obese men who drank 15 or more units a week increased their risk of liver disease by 19 times compared with normal weight non-drinkers.

"Reducing alcohol consumption and obesity are, at present, our only weapons against non-viral liver disease," the researchers concluded.

According to Alcohol Action Ireland, hospital discharges for alcohol-related liver disease in the country increased by 147 per cent between 1995 and 2004.