More Americans are drinking to death, study suggests



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The Great Recession continues to wreak havoc: Since 2009, a growing number of Americans have died of liver disease and of liver cancer . 34 years is particularly troubling because deaths are due to cirrhosis, a disease caused by excessive consumption the authors of a new study said. Researchers suspect that the economic downturn in 2008 prompted people to comfort themselves with alcohol.

"These are desperate deaths ," said principal investigator Dr. Elliot Tapper, assistant professor of gastroenterology at the University of Michigan

It is similar to overdose deaths in the opioid epidemic . In either case, people try to relieve the emotional pain that they feel, he says.

He warned though that, because it is an observational study, it can not prove the cause and effect.

Cirrhosis heals the liver The most common causes of cirrhosis are excessive consumption of alcohol over many years, Hepatitis C or an accumulation of excess fats in the blood. liver, known as hepatic steatosis, note authors of the study

While young people die of alcohol-related cirrhosis, older people die from a liver cancer and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. According to him, older people are more likely to be affected by the epidemic of obesity. In many cases, liver disease can be prevented by adopting a healthy lifestyle.

If cirrhosis is detected early, the liver repairs, Tapper said, and lost weight . Dr. Raymond Chung is Director of the Hepology and Liver Center at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

He stated that the increase in deaths could stem from several factors, including the complications of the hepatitis C epidemic and the

deaths of very young adults are striking, adds Chung, who is also a board member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases

"We do not yet understand why this is in this group of people. Age, further study is needed to determine if this is due to the amount or type of alcohol consumed, genetic factors or the presence of other forms of liver injury, "said Chung

The team examined the death certificate data of nearly 600,000 American adults

Between 1999 and 2016, deaths from cirrhosis increased by 65% ​​(from about 20,600 in 1999 to nearly 34,200 in 2016. Deaths due to cancer of the faith e have doubled (from more than 5,100 to almost 11,100) during the same period

Compared to women, men have almost twice as many deaths from cirrhosis and nearly four times more cancers. liver. From 1965 to 2016, people aged 25 to 34 had the largest annual increase in cirrhosis deaths, nearly 11%. The number of deaths from liver cancer among people under age 55 has decreased in people over 55, said Tapper.

The highest increase in deaths from cirrhosis was observed among whites, Amerindians and Hispanics. Deaths from cirrhosis and liver cancer have increased more rapidly in the states of the West and South. For example, deaths in Kentucky increased by almost 7%, New Mexico by 6% and Arkansas by almost 6%.

Only one state, Maryland, saw a significant decrease in deaths from cirrhosis. 19659002] According to Dr. David Bernstein, Chief of Hepatology at Northwell Health in Manhasset, NY, "This study highlights the silent epidemic of advanced liver disease in the United States, which remains largely unrecognized and unrecognized by the collective medical management. " 19659002] Bernstein added that "the document should be a wake-up call to the medical community – and especially to policy makers and health care administrators – that we must focus on disease prevention and modifying risk factors while at the same time shifting resources to address the already growing burden of cirrhosis and liver cancer. "

The report was published online July 18 in the BMJ .

A report from the United States Centers for Disea The control and prevention released earlier this week echoed these results

Between 2000 and 2016, deaths from liver cancer increased by 43% for men and by 40% for women aged 25 and over 19659027] [ad_2]
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