PEOPLE who drink up to three large glasses of wine a day could start feeling withdrawal symptoms after just 10 days of drinking that amount, according to a leading alcohol nurse.

Sandra Crompton, a liver nurse at Royal Bolton Hospital, sees about 100 new inpatients every month who all have a problem with alcohol misuse — with the majority admitted as an emergency.

People who have up to four pints of lager every day can experience withdrawal symptoms from alcohol after less than two weeks of drinking.

Mrs Crompton said: “Chronic liver disease associated with alcohol can develop over five to 10 years but in the presence of diabetes or obesity the time can be much shorter.

“It tends to be a very silent disease and only becomes obvious when there is significant damage or found accidentally on routine investigations.”

And the nurse says she often sees patients who are experiencing health problems after they have only slightly exceeded the recommended drinking levels of 14 units a week for women and 21 units a week for men.

Mrs Crompton said: “Health problems include epigastric (abdomen) discomfort, lethargy, recurrent infections, anaemia, mental health problems. It is quite common for these people to experience what we call ‘the everlasting cold’ — their immune system becomes less efficient due to the alcohol and simple viral infections take much longer to clear.”

But health improvements can start after just two or three alcohol-free weeks.

A small number of people aged between 20 and 30 in Bolton receive treatment for liver disease because of heavy drinking.

But the majority of sufferers are aged between 35 and 55. Alcohol-induced problems can include brain injuries triggered by drink, chronic vomiting syndrome, heart disease, depression, mental health problems, respiratory disease, head injuries caused while drinking, accidental and intentional overdoses and strokes.