Alcohol, Nutrition, and Obesity

Question
I started getting fat about the age of 16.
Before that I was a normal skinny kid.
I have always wondered why I find it difficult to lose weight even though I diet and exercise.
I just realised that at age 16 I also began drinking alcohol regularly.
Now at 43 I have decided fnally tp quit.
Do you think that drinking  alcohol regularly at an early age may have compromised my liver function?
Is it too late to heal even if I stop?
By the way,I live in a community where there are many people that belong to a church that preaches abstinance.Non of them are overweight.Most of my friends of other or non faiths are. Any connection?


Answer
Hello Bud,

It's "yes" to all your questions. Here are two expert statements from reports you can read online (see links below)

1. Although alcoholic liver damage is caused primarily by alcohol itself, poor nutrition may increase the risk of alcohol-related liver damage.

2. The body mass index (the measure of being overweight, weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared) of individuals who drink alcohol may be related to how much, and how often, they drink, according to a new study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). In an analysis of data collected from more than 37,000 people who had never smoked, researchers found that BMI was associated with the number of drinks individuals consumed on the days they drank. Calculated as an individual's weight in kilograms divided by height in meters squared, BMI measures whether or not a person is at a healthy weight - low BMI values generally indicate leanness and higher BMI values indicate being overweight.

Links:

Alcohol and Nutrition
http://dietandbody.com/did-you-know/2007/09/alcohol-and-nutrition.html

Alcohol and Obesity
http://dietandbody.com/2007/09/alcohol-and-obesity.html

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