The following is a summary of the “Alcohol consumption and metabolic syndrome: Clinical and epidemiological impact on liver disease,” published in the January 2023 issue of Hepatology by Aberg, et al.

The prevalence of alcoholism and metabolic syndrome in the community is considerable, and the two are often seen together. Both have been linked to various adverse health outcomes, particularly those involving the liver (i.e., decompensation or liver transplantation). The effects of light to moderate alcohol use on metabolic syndrome and fatty liver disease risk have produced conflicting results, which may be attributable to methodological variations across the studies. Even moderate alcohol consumption is linked to more negative consequences in the liver, according to the limited number of prospective research available. 

Systems biology investigations bolstered this result by showing that both alcohol and metabolic syndrome may play a similar function in fatty liver disease by exacerbating the disruption of essential homeostatic mechanisms that are already present. Both alcohol and metabolic variables are linked to liver-related outcomes, albeit in different ways. The risk of liver-related consequences is indeed increased by metabolic syndrome, and this risk is independent of alcohol consumption. Furthermore, the risk of liver-related consequences appears to be amplified when multiple components of metabolic syndrome are present. 

Measures of central/abdominal obesity, such as the waist-to-hip ratio, have been shown in several population studies to be more reliable predictors of liver-related outcomes than BMI, especially in those who consume hazardous levels of alcohol. Synergistic interactions between hazardous alcohol use and numerous metabolic components have been suggested by several research. This growing body of research demonstrates the complex multifactorial nature of the liver disease in the general population, with alcohol and metabolic variables having independent, combining, and moderating impacts on the development and progression of chronic liver disease. Current data suggests that more holistic approaches may improve risk assessment, medical diagnosis, and therapeutic strategy.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168827822030616