Alcoholic fatty liver disease (AFLD) impacts people who drink alcohol a lot over a long period of time. It occurs when too much fat builds up the liver. It can progress through three major phases:
- Alcohol-induced fatty liver – All livers contain some fat, but the liver’s normal fat level is 5 to 10 percent. If you have AFLD, you can have additional fatty deposits in the liver, causing the liver to swell.
For information on fatty liver disease not caused by alcohol, check out our summary of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), now called MASLD.
- Alcoholic hepatitis – If AFLD progresses, the liver becomes inflamed. As the liver tries to heal itself, it leaves behind scar tissue. If too much scar tissue builds up, it leads to the final stage of AFLD.
- Liver cirrhosis – When there is too much scar tissue, the liver can no longer function. This is called cirrhosis of the liver.
You can have NAFLD and AFLD at the same time