Cannabis protects the liver from alcohol-related damage
- What if there was a way to prevent liver cirrhosis, or even cancer?
- In this article, you'll learn about the connection between alcohol and cannabis consumption and the latest findings in this area.
We've heard a lot about the positive effects of cannabis on the body and brain. But we rarely consider its effects in combination with other intoxicating substances, such as alcohol. While examining the effects of each substance separately is useful, it doesn't entirely reflect the real situation. Many people consume cannabis alongside alcohol. Therefore, it's important to understand the impact of combining cannabis with alcohol on our health. Some researchers have taken up this challenge and focused on the effect of cannabis consumption on alcohol-related liver disease in their study.
What is Alcohol-Related Liver Damage?
Long-term consumption of excessive alcohol leads to a constant increase in inflammation, which causes liver damage. Alcohol directly damages liver cells and triggers an inflammatory response. Moreover, alcohol disrupts the intestinal walls. As a result, inflammatory cells travel and attempt to repair the damage. These inflammatory cells move through the intestines to the liver, contributing to inflammation. Alcohol also disrupts intestinal microorganisms, which release toxins into the bloodstream. The liver tries to break down these toxins, and during this process, inflammation occurs.
All these processes lead to the development of alcohol-related liver damage.
- The progression of this disease often brings intestinal function disorders, resulting in excessive fat accumulation in the liver. This causes a condition known as "steatosis" or "fatty liver."
- An excessive amount of fat cells in the liver increases cellular stress, leading to persistent inflammation present even when no alcohol is in the body. This state is called "alcoholic hepatitis."
- In the long term, inflammation can lead to irreversible liver cell damage. Such damage eventually reaches a point where very few healthy cells remain, and the liver is scarred with non-functional tissue. This phase is called "cirrhosis," and liver function is seriously compromised.
- Inflammation present in the body for years, or even decades, increases the risk of liver cancer, known as "hepatocellular carcinoma."
These are the four stages of destructive alcohol-related liver damage, which is currently a relatively common disease. Nearly 29% of people had an alcohol-related disorder, and 20% developed liver damage. And it can even kill you! People with alcohol-related disorders have twenty-three times higher chances of dying from liver damage. But what if there was a way to reduce the risk of alcohol-related liver damage for people with alcohol-related disorders?
Perhaps such a way exists. And cannabis might help us.
10% of people with alcohol-related disorders also have cannabis-related disorders. However, many cannabis users are not classified as dependent consumers. Could the anti-inflammatory effects of cannabis protect the body from developing alcohol-related liver damage?
Study Investigated: Cannabis's Impact on Alcohol-Related Liver Damage
In a large study involving 320,000 people with alcohol-related disorders* (more than 26,000 of them were cannabis-dependent, 4,300 were not), it was found that cannabis prevents the development of alcohol-related liver damage.
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