12 health risks of chronic heavy drinking

It's no secret that alcohol consumption can cause major health problems, including cirrhosis of the liver, as well as injuries sustained in road traffic accidents. But if you think liver disease and car crashes are the only health risks posed by drinking, think again -- researchers have linked alcohol consumption with more than 60 diseases. 

Here are 12 conditions linked to chronic heavy drinking.

Anaemia

Heavy drinking can cause the number of oxygen-carrying red blood cells to be abnormally low. This condition, known as anaemia, can trigger a host of symptoms, including fatigue, shortness of breath and lightheadedness.

Cancer

Habitual drinking is known to increase the risk of cancer. Scientists believe the increased risk comes when the body converts alcohol into acetaldehyde, a potent carcinogen. Cancer sites linked to alcohol use include the mouth, pharynx (throat), larynx (voice box), oesophagus, liver, breast, and colorectal region. The cancer risk is even higher in heavy drinkers who also use tobacco.

Cardiovascular disease

Heavy drinking, especially binge drinking, makes platelets more likely to clump together into blood clots, which can lead to heart attack or stroke. In 2005, Harvard researchers in the US found that binge drinking doubled the risk of death among people who initially survived a heart attack.

Heavy drinking can also cause cardiomyopathy, a potentially fatal condition in which the heart muscle weakens and eventually fails, as well as the heart rhythm abnormality atrial fibrillation, in which the heart's upper chambers (atria) twitch chaotically rather than contract rhythmically, which can cause blood clots that may trigger a stroke.

NHS advice is that, in men over 40 and women past the menopause, small amounts of alcohol (a couple of drinks a day) may reduce the risk of heart disease. For everyone else, too much alcohol is likely to cause weight gain, prevent proper exercise and be a cause of heart disease.

Cirrhosis

Alcohol is toxic to liver cells, and many heavy drinkers develop cirrhosis, a sometimes lethal condition in which the liver is so heavily scarred that it is unable to function. But it's hard to predict which drinkers will develop cirrhosis. Some people who drink excessively don’t get cirrhosis, and some who don't drink very much do. For reasons as yet unknown women seem to be especially vulnerable.