title: Is nutrient intake a gender-specific cause for enhanced susceptibility to alcohol-induced liver disease in women?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Women have a higher susceptibility to alcohol-induced liver disease (ALD) than men. Gender-related differences in food preference were described in previous studies for several populations, but not in alcohol abusers. As certain micronutrients are reported to take influence on the development of ALD in animal experiments, the hypothesis of the present retrospective cross-sectional study was that gender-dependent (micro-) nutrient intake in patients with ALD may cause the higher susceptibility of women to this disease.
  
  
  METHODS
  In 210 patients (male: 158, female: 52) with different stages of ALD (ALD1: mild stage of liver damage; ALD2: moderately severe changes of the liver with signs of hepatic inflammation; ALD3: severely impaired liver function) and in 336 controls (male: 208, female: 128), nutrient intake was determined by a computer-guided diet history, and related to the severity of ALD in dependence on the sex of the patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No significant differences between males and females with ALD were calculated for the intake (per kg body weight/day) of protein, carbohydrates, fat, and the intake (per kg body weight/day) of most micronutrients. In females with ALD, higher intake was found for vitamin C (ALD3), calcium (ALD2), iron (ALD1 and ALD2), and zinc (ALD1), but the consumption of none of these micronutrients seems to contribute to a higher susceptibility to ALD in females.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Though the present study confirms the higher susceptibility to ALD in women, the data of calculated daily macro- and micronutrient intake do not suggest any explicit influence of gender-specific nutrition in the development of ALD.
authors.affiliation: Hohenheim University, Department of Physiology of Nutrition and Gender Research, Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wagnerberger
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schäfer
authors.forename: Eveline
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.forename: Christiane
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bode
authors.forename: Alexandr
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parlesak
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D004435:Eating / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology*; D002149:Energy Intake / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D000431:Ethanol / Q000009:adverse effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008104:Liver Cirrhosis, Alcoholic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D008108:Liver Diseases, Alcoholic / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012727:Sex Characteristics
chemical_list: D000431:Ethanol