"We are finding that the amount of alcohol you have to drink chronically to develop pathologies is decreasing. Six glasses of wine or four beers consumed chronically over time can lead to a liver problem". Arthur Cederbaum, from Mount Sinai Hospital in New York (USA), spoke today at the III meeting on Advances in Molecular Medicine organized by the BBVA Foundation and the University of Navarra.

"There is also a marked difference according to sex. In women, the consumption threshold can be reduced to one or two beers or glasses of wine a day. Men's metabolism is more resistant to alcohol," said Arthur Cederbaum.

The Mount Sinai Hospital expert indicated that, within the same sex, sensitivity also varies according to individuals, and referred to the factors that can explain the differences: "On the one hand there is the per diem expenses that one follows and, on the other, genetic factors involved in the susceptibility to develop liver pathology due to alcohol consumption".

Arthur Cederbaum highlighted nutrition as one of the aspects that alcoholics have to take care of the most. "A per diem expenses rich in fats increases the chances of suffering damage. In this sense, the consumption of multivitamin complexes supplemented with vitamin E and C, which are the most potent antioxidants, can be recommended."

Liver problems, third leading cause of mortality in Spain

For his part, Fernando Corrales, researcher of the University of Navarra, added that cirrhosis "is a progressive disease that can appear due to different causes, and there is currently no treatment that helps to improve the condition of patients".

"It has been shown," he continued, "that a molecule called s-adenosylmethionine increases patient survival. But this essay has treated patients with a very mild Degree of cirrhosis, and it does not work when the pathology is extremely severe. In that case, the only thing that gives result is transplantation."

On the other hand, Fernando Corrales pointed out that "obesity, a problem that increasingly affects the population, is a condition that greatly favors the development of liver diseases". This expert explained that "it starts with mild pathologies such as fatty acid, which progress to cirrhosis or hepatocarcinoma. It is interesting to know these early stages in order to be able to predict a possible disease and perhaps develop therapeutic strategies for these early stages. We must not forget that the third leading cause of mortality in Spain is liver problems".