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Hepatologist Dr Cyriac Abby Philips, also known by his social media handle "The Liver Doc," recently shared a concerning case on X (formerly Twitter) that reveals a severe impact alcohol can have on the brain. In the post, The Liver Doc shared the case of a 40-year-old patient who had attended a weekend party and is now in the ICU, battling for his life after suffering a brain haemorrhage caused due to alcohol consumption.

Dr Philips used this example to show the harmful effects of alcohol go beyond liver damage and can extend to the brain, leading to life-threatening consequences. He shared brain scans of two people: one, a 68-year-old non-drinker, and the other, the 40-year-old patient who had consumed alcohol. The difference was shocking. While the non-drinker’s brain scan appeared healthy, the patient’s scan revealed large white patches—signs of bleeding inside the brain. The pressure from this bleeding was so severe that it was crushing his brain tissue.

In his post, Dr Philips stated, "A patient decided to party last weekend and is now battling for life on the ventilator. He won't make it. See what alcohol does to the brain. It is not just the liver you need to worry about. Alcohol is a systemic poison. It damages everything in its path. The big white blotches you see in the set of bottom images are blood. So much bleeding into the brain, that the pressure inside the skull rose crushing his whole brain tissue, landing the patient inside the ICU on a ventilator, where he would say goodbye to his family, and us. You can party without alcohol. You won't lose anything."

A netizen with the username 'The Rehab Doc' replied to the post saying "Stroke following alcohol consumption is on the rise, especially among young people. Some think that it's only binge alcohol drinking, which is wrong. Even a single glass of beer can trigger a stroke. Have seen many cases coming for Neuro-Rehabilitation where a patient would have gone for a party in Goa, Thailand.... had a few drinks and the next day waking up with hemiplegia (One-sided weakness following stroke)."

A study published in Neurology revealed that people in their 20s and 30s who consume moderate to heavy amounts of alcohol are at a higher risk of suffering strokes as young adults. The study, led by Eue-Keun Choi of Seoul National University, examined over 1.5 million participants and found that those who drank 105 grams or more of alcohol per week (equivalent to about one drink per day) faced a 20 per cent higher risk of stroke after two or more years of such drinking patterns.

The study revealed that the risk of stroke increased with longer durations of drinking. After two years of moderate drinking, the stroke risk rose by 19 per cent, and after four years, it reached 23 per cent. Hemorrhagic strokes, caused by brain bleeding, were particularly linked to alcohol consumption. The findings stress the importance of reducing alcohol intake among young adults to lower the risk of stroke and other serious health issues.

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