Liver Disease and early Deaths
“With well over 40,000 hospital admissions every year due to alcohol, liver disease is going to be the main cause of early deaths” said Jim Bett, service manager at Fife Alcohol Support Service (FASS). “Alcohol and obesity are the main causes of liver issues and what is very concerning is that many of those dying are young or in middle age.”
It has been predicted that by 2020, liver disease will have overtaken heart disease with 80,000 working years lost annually, and this was confirmed by Professor Nick Sheron, liver expert from the University of Southampton who was heavily involved in research recently published in The Lancet medical journal.
His comments were endorsed by Judi Rhys, chief executive at the British Liver Trust who stated that “Many of us are putting our livers at risk from drinking too much alcohol.”
Jim Bett added that “These shocking numbers highlight the fact that we are facing a liver disease crisis. There is an enormous cost benefit to addressing liver disease early and we should make certain that primary care practitioners have all the tools and levers they need to enable early diagnosis and prevention.”
Katherine Brown, chief executive of the Institute of Alcohol Studies said, “This report confirms our fears that liver disease rates are continuing to rise in the UK and means that more people are suffering and dying prematurely from a largely preventable disease."
Jim Bett also explained that drinking too much can seriously affect a person's health and can cause social problems and have a negative effect on families and communities. If this is a real problem for anybody, then they should contact FASS. Our counsellors see these problems with many of our clients here in Fife, and operate a free and confidential counselling service which takes place every week throughout Fife. This can assist any individual to reduce or eliminate the harmful effects of alcohol. Our counselling has helped many local individuals from all different walks of life, and it only takes one phone call to get started.
Call FASS now on 01592-206200 – it really can make a difference!