Can people's livers REALLY be so different?

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I have a Aunt who has been an alcoholic for the past 30 years. She is 57 yrs old. She drinks all day and every day. Most of the family will not have anything to do with her anymore but I check in on her twice a week (I live 2 blocks from her). Aside from what seems to me to be a permanent slur to her words and extreme clumsiness, she seems healthy. I cant even remember the last time she got a cold let alone anything serious. She says her good health is because of her "irish liver".

My husbands childhood friend has been a alcoholic for 4 years. According to my husband, he also drinks every day. He was just admitted to the ICU with esophageal varices. All I know, is that its very serious and they are not sure if he will be okay or not. The last time my husband saw him was a couple of months ago and he said he looked kinda yellow then. (Im assuming from his liver). He is 27 years old.

Im just amazed that one can be in a life or death situation after only a few years of etoh abuse and the other has been abusing etoh for what to some is a lifetime and she is fine (relatively speaking). Is there truly no way of telling who will get sick and who wont with alcoholics? Do genes really play that big of a role in how your body reacts like my aunt claims? I find it fascinating in a very sad kind of way.

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another factor that could aggravate the liver from etoh abused is if he has chronic hepatitis

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genes do figure in, i am sure. But so does "dose".....is he doing a case of beer and a fifth of scotch, while she is doing half a fifth?

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Specializes in Psych (25 years), Medical (15 years).

Interesting question, samirish. I worked extensively in Chemical dependency some years ago and this subject was discussed. Now, I'm giving this information off of the top of my head, so I have no resources to back me up, but...

It was surmised that those groups of people whose ancestors had been exposed to alcohol for centuries had a lower rate of alcoholism than those groups of people who had not had a long history of exposure.

Native American or African American Ancestry do not have a long history of exposure to alcohol. Austrian or Irish Ancestory People's exposure to alcohol which dates back many centuries. According to what I remember, the ratio of alcoholics is higher in the first than in the latter group.

It was believed that Natural Selection had a part in this scenerio. You know, only the strong survive thing. If the People of Old were able to injest this stuff and not die, they went on to proliferate. And it seems to me that drinking ale or some other kind of weak alcoholic beverage was healthier than drinking the germ-infested waters of the time.

But, who knows?

Dave

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Fascination topic, I wish I knew more about alcoholics physiologically, I know enough psychologically!!!

From very close first hand knowledge I know of an alcoholic who NEVER gets hung over!!! He does NOT start drinking until around 9:00 each night so it doesn't seem to be that he just stays drunk, wakes up and starts drinking first thing in the morning.

Drives me crazy, I have one glass of wine, feel hung over AND regret the glass of wine one hour later!!!! Thus I seldom drink!!!

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Fascination topic, I wish I knew more about alcoholics physiologically, I know enough psychologically!!!

From very close first hand knowledge I know of an alcoholic who NEVER gets hung over!!! He does NOT start drinking until around 9:00 each night so it doesn't seem to be that he just stays drunk, wakes up and starts drinking first thing in the morning.

Drives me crazy, I have one glass of wine, feel hung over AND regret the glass of wine one hour later!!!! Thus I seldom drink!!!

don't drink often, never had a hangover.....do you drink red or white? perhaps what you are getting is a "red wine" h/a?

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Thanks for your concern, ha ha. I'm kind of glad I get hangovers easily. Otherwise I'd drink more than would be good for me!!!!

I don't think it is red wine headaches, it can happen with any alcoholic beverage, not that I try very many. I used to be able to drink more when I was young!!!! Guess it is just old age!!!!!

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