Drug and Alcohol Addiction Raises Risk for Hepatitis Virus
Drug Addiction Increases Risk for Hep C
If your first thought was, “I thought I was vaccinated for Hepatitis as a kid,” you’d be partially right. There are five separate strains of Hepatitis, known as type A, B, C, D, and E (types D and E are extremely rare in the United States).
Vaccines for Hepatitis A and B are widely available in the United States and easily obtainable from almost any health care provider. In fact, on the recommendation of the World Health Organization, most children receive 2 doses of HAV and 3 doses of HBV vaccine by the time they’re two years old. There is no vaccine for the Hepatitis C virus. Infection takes hold in your liver, causing swelling, scarring, and eventual death from liver failure. Some people experience few, if any, symptoms.
Who is Most at Risk for Hepatitis C?
Hepatitis C is contagious and spreads from person to person via contaminated blood. Intravenous drug users are in the most dangerous position for infection when needles and syringes are either reused or shared with another user. Unprotected sexual encounters also create high risk for acquiring the virus, especially among homosexual males.
Because drug and alcohol use lower our inhibitions and risk assessment, drug addicts and alcoholics represent a large portion of the population with HCV.
How Can You Tell If You Have Hepatitis?
You can’t look at a person and tell whether or not they have the virus. A doctor has to extract a blood sample for evaluation, sometimes following up with an ultrasound or biopsy if there’s a suspicion that the disease has been progressing for a long time.
Symptoms can include: fever, chills, muscle aches, headaches, joint pain, abdominal discomfort, nausea, loss of appetite, vomiting, fatigue, weight loss, and even jaundice (distinctive yellow appearance of the skin and whites of the eyes). Some people experience all of these symptoms, some people experience just a few. Others may have symptoms only in the beginning, and still other people might not notice anything at all. No two people will respond the same.
How to Prevent Further Damage from Hepatitis
Obviously, the sooner you seek treatment, the better. The likelihood that we would participate in risky behaviors is much higher when under the influence. A good rehab center will discuss your drug history and run the necessary tests if infection is suspected. Treatment for the drug or alcohol addiction will give you a fighting chance at recovery and remission.
Cutting out soda, tea, and coffee from your diet and drinking water, milk, and 100% fruit and vegetable juices gives your body the hydration and nutrition it desperately needs. Eat less salty foods and more protein-rich foods to reduce inflammation and build healthy cells.
Also, be sure you are current with vaccinations for Hepatitis A and B, so infection with those strains doesn’t add further damage and scarring to the liver.
Tell Us: Were you aware of the risks regarding Hepatitis C and IV drug use before you began using needles? If not, would it have kept you from experimenting with IV drugs?
Tags: Alcohol Rehab, alcohol-addiction-treatment, Drug Addiction Treatment, drug-rehab
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