Aurora, Colorado. – Are a growing number of young Americans drink their way On the organ transplantation list – especially women.
Alcohol is the main cause of liver disease, according to the National Institutes of Health.
Dr. James Burton, A liver transplantation Expert in Colorado, said this is a new and alarming shift. A decade ago it was usually men in the 50s and 60s who needed liver transplants, he noticed.
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“We not only started to see more women, but (more) younger women in the twenty and 30s,” Burton, a professor of medicine and gastro -centerology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, told Fox News.
“I had never seen that young women need liver transplants at that age – and that is not unique to us. That is a problem throughout America,” the doctor added.
Dr. James Burton (photo), an expert from liver transplantation in Colorado, noted an alarming shift in the number of young people who needed liver transplants. (Kennedy Hayes/ Fox News)
Some patients who need alcohol -related liver transplants are as young as their early 20s and have started Alcohol In their teenage years, Burton said.
Alcohol -related liver disease leads to almost 50% of all liver transplant operations, he noticed.
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“There are people who may not drink every day, but they drink hard at the weekend – and may have eight to 10 drinks. That’s just as bad,” Burton said.
Things took a turn during COVID-19 Lockdowns, he noticed, when more people drunk at home exaggerated.
During COVID-19 Lockdowns, more people drunk at home, said an expert in liver health. (Istock)
Plus, Women process alcohol Unlike men, Burton warned.
Emma Lillibridge, 31, said she never thought she would be a recipient of the liver transplantation. The Colorado woman went to the hospital with a disease and was shocked to discover the size of her health problems, she told Fox News.
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Doctors told Lillibridge that she would need surgery, because heavy alcohol consumption in her 1920s to the Failure She noticed from her liver.
“I had no idea what I was walking in. I went into the hospital and thought I had pneumonia and left five weeks later with a new liver,” said Lillibridge.
Emma Lillibridge (photo), 31, went to the hospital with an illness and was shocked to discover that she needed a kidney transplant. (Kennedy Hayes/Fox News)
“In a brewery I also worked behind the scenes, such as in the actual brewing house, brewing beer. So I was surrounded by a ton of men who just puffed beer 24/7,” said Lillibridge.
“So it was not uncommon for me during a service, people who walk upstairs said:” Make a beer shot with me. “
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By the time Lillibridge was 30, she was told that she needed a transplant to save her life. She now shares her story to save others.
After receiving liver transplant surgery before the age of 30, Lillibridge (photo) shares her story to save others. (Emma Lillibridge/Fox News)
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“I really don’t think people recognize how normalized drinking has become heavy drinking in our culture, so they don’t see that they have a problem until they really take a look,” she added.
Lillibridge received her liver transplantation operation in October 2023. She told Fox News that she is now sober, healthy and back on her feet. She started a new job and is planning to get married soon.
