Table III.

Factors affecting the serum level of traditional alcohol biomarkers [8, 68]

Parameter	Biomarker
	γ-Glutamyl transeferase (GGT)	Aspartate amino-transferase (AST)	Alanine amino-transferase (ALT)	Mean corpuscular volume (MCV)	Carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (CDT)
Age	Less likely ↑ in subjects < 30 years of age and possibly in subjects > 60 years of age	Less likely ↑ in subjects < 30 years of age and possibly in subjects > 70 years of age	Less likely ↑ in subjects < 30 years of age and possibly in subjects > 70 years of age	Less likely ↑ in subjects < 30 years of age and possibly in the elderly	Less likely ↑ in subjects < 30 years of age
Gender	More likely ↑ in men	Not reported	Not reported	More likely ↑ in women	Less likely ↑ in women
Medical conditions	(↑): Liver and biliary disorders, obesity, hypertriglyceridaemia, diabetes, pancreatitis, hyperthyroidism, hypertension, heart diseases, kidney diseases, venous embolism and thrombosis, serious injuries	(↑): Obesity, liver and biliary disorders, muscle diseases, extreme exertion	(↑): Obesity, liver and biliary disorders	(↑): Folate or vitamin B12 deficiency, bleeding, haematological conditions (including haemolysis, haemoglobinopathies, marked increases in white cell count, bone marrow diseases), non-alcoholic liver disease, hypothyroidism, hyperglycaemia	(↑): Iron deficiency, hormonal status in women (including pregnancy), cystic fibrosis, carbohydrate-deficient glycoprotein syndrome, galactosaemia, non-alcoholic liver disease (e.g. hepatitis C, hepatocellular carcimoma, primary biliary cirrhosis), liver and pancreas transplantation, dementia, depression, solvent intoxication
Medications	(↑): Liver microsomal enzymes inducers, e.g. anticolvulsants, anticoagulants, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, tricyclic antidepressants	(↑): Almost any medication, e.g. anticolvulsants, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, statins, herbal preparations	(↑): Almost any medication, e.g. anticolvulsants, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, statins, herbal preparations	(↑): Chemotherapy, antivirals, anticolvulsants, oral contraceptives, trimethoprim, colchicine, neomycin, nitrous oxide	(↑): Probably anticolvulsants (↓): Probably angiotensin II receptor blockers (sartans)
Other	Smoking (↑), fruit intake (↓), carbohydrate (↓), coffee (↓)	Coffee (↓)	Coffee (↓)	Smoking (↑), coffee (↓)	Not reported