Is Alcohol Bad for Your Skin?

The disconnect arises because at higher intakes alcohol acts as a pro-oxidant, so actually generates free radicals rather than neutralizing their effects. In other words, drinking alcohol can increase inflammation in your body and damage cells, including your skin cells. Heavy alcohol consumption could lead to flare-ups of existing inflammatory conditions and might put you at a higher risk of developing inflammatory skin conditions like psoriasis (Al-Jefri, 2017). Regularly exceeding alcohol recommendations not only takes its toll on your skin’s appearance, but it can also worsen pre-existing skin conditions and leave you vulnerable to skin problems that pose a risk to your health.

• Another benefit of Dry January is that your energy levels will increase, and you will likely be more active than when you were drinking, helping you shed even more weight.
• Alcohol abuse weakens the immune system, making it harder for the body to recover from an infection or wound.
• Heavy drinking reduces options for treatment of psoriasis, as some medication can be contraindicated if your drinking leads to liver disease or high levels of triglycerides in the blood,” she says.
• After a night out on the town, your go-to remedy is to probably take a triple-shot of espresso, followed by a pint of water—desperate to wake up and rehydrate.
• Over-the-counter shampoos are a good first treatment option, but you may need a prescription remedy.

So, instead, aim for moderation and try to avoid heavy drinking or binge drinking. Unfortunately, if you’ve been drinking heavily for a long time, some damage may be irreversible. In this case, try to cut back on alcohol as much as you can to help your skin rebound. A not-so-obvious way that alcohol affects the skin is through oxidative stress, which happens when there are too many free radicals in the body. Oxidative stress damages every type of cell in your body, including your skin. In 2019 and has noticed a dramatic improvement in her skin, “I’m so much happier with my skin since I stopped drinking,” she said. “I used to spend a fortune on skin creams and facials, and they’d barely make a difference – but quitting alcohol, even in just the first couple of weeks, had a dramatic and instant effect on my complexion.”

The effects of dehydration from alcohol

A common problem of drinking – directly related to the sugars and carbohydrates found in alcoholic drinks – is the occurrence ofpimples and breakouts. Increased blood sugar and insulin levels lead to a higherandrogenproduction. This imbalance in hormone levels may influence thesebum productionof the skin and lead to pimple breakouts. One drink will not cause acne breakouts but frequently drinking may influence acne, mainly for young people. After drinking, adisturbed moisture balancearises and vitamins and minerals are withdrawn from the body. This disturbed balance will not only cause headache , it also leads to adehydrated skin.

Dry skin is a common problem and although everything from sun exposure and cold winds to very low fat diets can dry out your skin, your choice of beverage can also strip your skin of moisture. how alcohol affects your skin When you are dehydrated on the inside, less water is available to moisturize your skin, leading to skin that appears rough, flaky and is more prone to sensitivity and itching.

Is Alcohol Bad for Your Skin? We Asked the Experts

Now that you know what alcohol does to your skin and how addiction affects your appearance, it’s time to get sober. After all, if alcoholism is wreaking so much havoc on your skin, it can be frightening to think about what it’s doing to the rest of your body. Alcoholism and addiction can harm your skin, your liver, your heart, and even your brain. The first step in treating the problems caused by alcoholism and addiction is to find your sobriety. Indirectly, drinking alcohol can accelerate signs of skin aging by causing you to get less sleep and make poor diet decisions. Participating in Dry January could help keep you out of the doctor’s office.

If you’re partial to a few JD and cokes on a night out, then you may find yourself waking up with awful hangovers. In fact, dark spirits are generally make for the worst hangovers and are the worst culprits for bad skin. Ethanol consumption synergistically increases ultraviolet radiation induced skin damage and immune dysfunction. Alcohol consumption is the most common cause of porphyria cutanea tarda .