Daily glass of wine is risky for obese women

Drinking 150g of alcohol a week – the equivalent of just over one standard glass of wine a day – boosts the rates of cirrhosis of the liver in obese women.

But men are also at risk, researchers found, showing an elevated risk if they are overweight drinkers.

Obese men drinking 15 or more units a week – the equivalent of five pints of beer a week – had almost 19 times higher risk of dying of liver disease.

Experts said modern lifestyles were leading to end-stage liver disease in British adults.

For women drinking 150g of alcohol or more per week (equivalent to 19 units), the risk was 2.7 per 1,000 women for those of normal weight, doubling to five per 1,000 women among those who were obese.