A Downside to Holiday Cheer. What Alcohol Really Does to Your Liver.
The holidays give us a reason to celebrate. For many of us, alcohol plays a big part in the festivities. But too many glasses of good cheer too often can lead to something less than cheerful — an overworked liver.
Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, the average American sees a 100 percent increase in drinking habits. Holidays aside, Americans are drinking more and for longer periods of time than ever before. The pandemic played a role in the increase, but research suggests we’ve upped the ante on alcohol use long before the COVID-19 crisis started.
Alcohol and Your Liver
The liver is the largest organ in your body. It helps digest food, store energy, and remove toxins. When you drink alcohol, an enzyme in the liver breaks down the alcohol so it can be removed from your body.
Our bodies can only process one unit of alcohol per hour, which means if you drink more than one drink in that time period, your body is not able to process all that extra booze. This can trigger your liver to generate harmful substances that can damage liver cells, cause inflammation, and weaken your immune system.
Drinking too much alcohol can lead to Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease, which causes liver inflammation and eventually cirrhosis, which creates scarring in the liver and may potentially develop into liver cancer. Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease is considered a silent disease, with few or no symptoms. The damage begins when you drink as little as four drinks a day for men and two drinks a day for women.
Here are what experts consider to be a problem when it comes to consuming alcoholic beverages.
Heavy Drinking – Consuming four drinks on any day or more than 14 drinks per week (men) or three drinks on any day or more than seven drinks per week.
Binge Drinking – Consuming five or more alcoholic drinks (men) or four or more drinks (women) in two hours.
Check Your Liver Health
You owe it to yourself to know if your drinking is hurting your liver. The Liver Function Panel at Any Lab Test Now consists of a simple blood draw that is used in seven tests to see how well your liver is working. This test doesn’t require fasting, and we provide the doctor’s order, so you can walk into your local Any Lab Test Now for a same-day test — no prep necessary.
If you are drinking excessively, there are organizations that can help. SAMHSA, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, is a free, confidential 24/7 365-day a year helpline and can be reached at 1-800-622-HELP (4357).
Be at Ease
Any Lab Test Now wants you to be at ease when it comes to seeking out any type of lab work, including testing to determine the health of your liver. We want to be a committed partner in helping you manage your wellness routine so you can make educated decisions that will directly affect your quality of life.
Find your closest Any Lab Test Now store at www.anylabtestnow.com.
You Shouldn’t Drive Drunk or Drugged
National Drunk and Drugged Driving Awareness Month
Impaired driving is extremely common around the holidays, which is why the Center for Disease Control (CDC) chose December to be National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month or 3D Month.
Join ANY LAB TEST NOW® as we encourage our community to become aware of all the harm drunk and drugged driving can cause. It becomes more than just a way to get home from a long night out; people lose lives, become seriously injured, their families change forever and a lifetime of guilt can occur for those who choose to drive under the influence.
Did you know that young people, motorcyclists and drivers with prior impaired driving convictions are the most at risk? Learn more FAQ’s and statistics from the CDC.
We offer a plethora of short-term and long-term drug and alcohol related tests, available for you to see here. Designate a sober driver if you plan on celebrating the holidays. You’ll get home safely and so will the rest of the road.
