How alcohol can affect your liver

Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol can have both short and long-term effects on your health and wellbeing, including causing liver damage. Although your liver can regenerate, repeated damage can cause healthy tissue to be replaced with scar tissue. As the amount of scar tissue increases, the function of your liver can decrease.

What can happen to your liver if you drink too much?

A leading cause of liver damage is long-term alcohol misuse, which can lead to alcohol-related liver disease. Your liver has the ability to regenerate in response to damage but repeated damage causes scar tissue to build up, which over time can impair your liver function.

Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol can also increase your risk of certain cancers, including breast cancer, colon cancer, liver cancer, mouth cancer and oesophageal cancer. 

Alcohol and liver damage

Regularly drinking too much alcohol puts a strain on your liver, which is responsible for processing alcohol by breaking it down. The byproducts of the breakdown of alcohol are what damage your liver. 

Alcohol-related liver damage initially causes fat to accumulate in your liver, followed by inflammation and finally the build-up of scar tissue. 

What are the first signs of liver damage?

In the early stages, you may not be aware that you have alcohol-related liver disease as it doesn’t often cause symptoms initially. However, as the condition progresses, you may experience:

• Abdominal pain or discomfort — pain will occur in the upper right side of your abdomen due to your liver swelling
• Fatigue
• Loss of appetite
• Nausea 
• Unexplained weight loss
• Vomiting 

Risk factors for liver damage

Risk factors for developing alcohol-related liver disease include:

• Being female 
• Being overweight or obese
• Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol — drinking in moderation (ie less than 14 units a week, spread over at least three days) can cause fat to accumulate in your liver but in much lower amounts than drinking excessively
• Having a chronic (long-term) infection with hepatitis B or hepatitis C
• Your genetics — your genes affect how well your liver breaks down alcohol and your risk for developing alcohol-related liver disease

Alcohol and liver cancer

Regularly drinking excessive amounts of alcohol increases your risk of liver cirrhosis (long-term liver damage and scarring), which subsequently increases your risk of liver cancer. 

Symptoms of liver cancer

In the early stages, liver cancer often doesn’t cause any symptoms. However, as the condition progresses, you may experience: 

• Abdominal symptoms — this includes
• A lump on the right side of your abdomen
• A swollen abdomen 
• Abdominal pain
• Itchy skin
• Jaundice ie yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes
• Loss of appetite or feeling full after eating very little
• Nausea
• Unexplained weight loss

If you have liver cirrhosis or another liver condition and you notice any of the above symptoms, new symptoms or worsening symptoms, see your doctor. 

Risk factors for liver cancer

Seven in every 100 cases of liver cancer in the UK are caused by excessive alcohol consumption. The more alcohol you consume, the higher your risk of liver cancer. Research has shown drinking 4.5 units of alcohol or more every day increases your risk by 16%, while drinking six units of alcohol or more every day more than doubles your risk when compared with non-drinkers or occasional drinkers.

How to improve liver health

Reducing how much alcohol you drink will improve your liver health. There are several other steps you can take to improve your liver health, including: 

• Checking with your doctor whether any medications or supplements you’re taking are placing an extra strain on your liver — your doctor may be able to recommend and/or prescribe alternative medications or supplements
• Exercising regularly to reduce excess fat, including fat in your liver
• Following a healthy, balanced diet
• Having regular health check-ups
• Maintaining a healthy weight