Alcoholism - Complications

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Adult children of alcoholic parents are at higher risk for divorce and for psychiatric symptoms. One study concluded that the only events with greater psychological impact on children are sexual and physical abuse.

Increased Risk for Other Addictions

Researchers are finding common genetic factors in alcohol and nicotine addiction, which may explain, in part, why alcoholics are often smokers. Alcoholics who smoke compound their health problems. More alcoholics die from tobacco-related illnesses, such as heart disease or cancer, than from chronic liver disease, cirrhosis, or other conditions that are more directly tied to excessive drinking.

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Liver Disorders

Alcoholic Hepatitis and Cirrhosis. Alcohol is absorbed in the small intestine and passes directly into the liver, where it becomes the preferred energy source. The liver, then, is particularly endangered by alcoholism. In the liver alcohol converts to toxic chemicals, notably acetaldehyde, which trigger the production of immune factors called cytokines. In large amounts, these factors cause inflammation and tissue injury.

Even moderate alcohol intake can produce pain in the upper right quarter of the abdomen -- a possible symptom of liver involvement. In many cases, such symptoms may be an indication of fatty liver or alcohol hepatitis, which are reversible liver conditions.

Between 10 - 20% of people who drink heavily (5 or more drinks a day) develop cirrhosis, a progressive and irreversible scarring of the liver that can eventually be fatal. Alcoholic cirrhosis (also sometimes referred to as portal, Laennec’s, nutritional, or micronodular cirrhosis) is the primary cause of cirrhosis in the US. It is estimated to be responsible for between 44 - 80% of deaths from cirrhosis in North America. [See In-Depth Report #75: Cirrhosis.]