The Impact of Alcohol on Your Skin
There’s no question that alcohol has an effect on people’s skin. Ask any image-conscious binge drinker, they will quickly be able to draw a connection between the long nights of drinking and blemishes the next day.
Why is this such an issue? Why does water hydrate your skin so well and alcohol leave your skin dried out, unhealthy and patchy? Below we will answer some of these questions and more to try and get to the bottom of what makes alcohol such a menace to good skincare.
Toxic Effects
Your body breaks down alcohol in many different ways than just simple water. Alcohol is processed in the liver, and in the liver, many of the harmful chemicals are turned into something else. The enzymes that your liver produces to break down alcohol are toxic to your body and will quickly start changing the way that your skin looks. Your skin doesn’t just look unhealthy, it actually is getting poisoned slowly by what you’re drinking.
Alcohol also inflames your skin, causing irritation that some people will physically see as redness in the face.
Finally, alcohol also dilates your pores and leaves your skin open to the possibility of dirt and other bad stuff getting into your pores and eventually creating whiteheads or blackheads the next day.
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Different Types of Alcohol Do Different Things
While all alcohol will have negative effects on your skin (especially in larger amounts), not all alcohol is the same. Beer is likely the worst offender of this and will make a binge beer drinker feel the effects the fastest. This is because beer is filled with extra additives that put an extra strain on your liver that will make it harder for your body to process the alcohol.
The second worst offender is likely any darker spirits. Whiskey, scotch, and the like all have more additives and, like beer, will put a larger strain on your liver. Clear alcohols still put a large strain on your liver and will create unwanted skin effects when consumed in large amounts, but it will be a noticeably smaller difference if the alcohol is controlled in a scientific study.
The best alcohol (and by best we mean the least offensive) is likely red wine. This is because red wine has anti-oxidants in it that will counter some of the negative effects of the enzymes that are being created in your liver.
Other “Acceptable” Drugs Are Harmful Too!
While alcohol is the worst of the lot, there are many other drugs that are dehydrators and will wreak havoc on your skin. One of the most common ones is caffeine. Caffeine is broken down in your body in a very similar way in the liver. These enzymes are still created and when they’re created in a large amount, they will have a negative, noticeable effect on your skin.
If you see an issue with your skin and believe that it might have something to do with your diet, check first the number of dehydrators that you are drinking and try to match them with more water. While water won’t totally counteract the negative effects that some particularly offensive dehydrators will, it may help reduce the effects in a significant way.
Alcohol will have a specific effect on your skin, and caffeine will have a similar but different effect. Caffeine will often age your skin very quickly, giving you wrinkles and other marks that will be visible. Alcohol does similar things, but they show up in different ways.
How To Drink Responsibly In Regards to Your Skin
So what then, should you do in order to have healthy skin? The answer to that question really comes down to a personal ability to understand how much you should be drinking and be vigilant to not cross any lines.
If you feel drunk, your liver is working overtime and not able to break down the amount of alcohol that you’re giving your body. If this is the case, you are most certainly harming your skin and will see the effects in the near future.
Drinking responsibly and doing your best to not cross any lines will help you keep a younger and healthier skin glow. Being careful to not binge drink ever will also help keep your skin looking great.
One way that you can help keep yourself satisfied and keep your skin healthy is to alternate between whatever you’re drinking and a glass of water. One after the other, every time. Not only will this help pace you throughout the night, but it will also help keep your skin hydrated. This technique will help keep you hopefully feeling good throughout the night without crossing any lines, and also not overly thirsty, should you feel like you need more to drink.
This can be a difficult journey, but you don’t have to go it alone. Let us be your guide and provide you the environment needed to regain control of your life and begin the path to recovery.
Reach Out For Help
If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, reach out to us at ecosoberhouse.com. Don’t wait, reach out right now and start your recovery. We have the tools to help get you clean as soon as possible and get you on the track to getting your life back in your own hands. If you don’t know where to turn, reach out today.
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