Alcohol has several effects on the body, most of which are not pleasant. This leads to swelling, flushing, and broken capillaries that make you look older. Take our short alcohol quiz to learn where you fall on the drinking spectrum and if you might benefit from quitting or cutting back on alcohol.
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Aging of the body is a natural process and there is no getting away from it, but sometimes you can come across cases when this process happens too fast. Regular exercise doesn’t just improve cardiovascular health; it can also improve circulation, which can leave your skin looking youthful. Exercise also improves muscle tone, which prevents skin sagging as you get older.
Strategies to Protect Your Health if You Drink Alcohol
Although free radicals play their own role in protecting your health, when they’re not kept in balance by antioxidants, they begin to damage your fatty tissue, DNA and proteins. That damage can, in turn, contribute to diabetes, heart disease, neurodegenerative illnesses and other age-related conditions you want to avoid. Drinking water between alcoholic beverages “will combat ethanol-induced dehydration, which will help your skin to look better the next day,” Koskinen said. The immune system also suffers, allowing anything to easily get through, disrupt sexual function and the functions of the nervous system. All these diseases do not contribute to the preservation of youth and the health of the body. There is only one way out of alcohol-caused aging – to try to get rid of the addiction and minimize alcohol intake.
- Let’s take a look at some of the ways that alcohol affects the aging process.
- Too much sun leads to what dermatologists call ‘photoaging.’ Over time, the skin loses its elasticity and doesn’t bounce back as it used to.
- The non-invasive treatment has no downtime, and each session takes up to 30 minutes.
- Changes to blood vessels brought on by excess alcohol consumption can affect various parts of the body.
- She started her career as a general news and lifestyle reporter and has interviewed legends like Maya Angelou and covered the 2014 Olympics from Sochi, Russia.
Centenarians Often Healthier Than Younger Seniors
Many things, like makeup application and clothing style, can change how people perceive age. Andrades encourages anyone who drinks to be mindful of how many ounces of alcohol you’re consuming. Alcohol tolerance what is a substance abuse counselor tends to decrease as we age due to changes in our bodies as we get older, such as reduced liver function and decreased muscle mass. When you lack vitamin D, it affects the body’s ability to absorb calcium.
You will likely also make unhealthy choices when drinking that you wouldn’t make when sober, such as ordering greasy fast food. Due to issues like these, heavy drinking gabapentin withdrawal leads to weight gain that becomes increasingly hard to lose and can make you look years older. Dehydration can cause a lack of energy, headaches and poor concentration.
Research conducted at the University of Liverpool found that individuals who drink alcohol regularly throughout the day are attracted to salty and fatty foods. This may be explained by a shift in hormones, especially leptin. It was uncovered that leptin levels bath salts abuse and addiction decrease by half after a person consumes large amounts of alcohol. Alcohol can cause a lack of rest from a depleted sleep cycle. Usually, alcohol makes a person toss and turn during the night. In other words, a person suffers from poor quality of sleep.
You’ll meet millions of fellow Reframers in our 24/7 Forum chat and daily Zoom check-in meetings. Receive encouragement from people worldwide who know exactly what you’re going through! You’ll also have the opportunity to connect with our licensed Reframe coaches for more personalized guidance. Many addiction treatment programs, support groups, and 12 step programs provide the tools needed in order to be successful after detox. That way people with alcohol use problems can receive the help and support that they need while they continue to live their lives. The first thing you can do to reverse alcohol-aging is stop drinking.
Dehydrated skin doesn’t just feel dry; it can also become more sensitive to irritants and pollutants in the environment, which can speed up aging. When you don’t get enough physical activity, your skin can appear dull and lifeless. Your skin gets dull, and you might get dark circles under your eyes. These signs of fatigue can definitely add years to your appearance, making you seem older than you actually are. You might notice that your skin feels thicker or leathery, or you might see more lines on your face when you look in the mirror.
Many people pour themselves a “nightcap” to help them fall asleep faster, not realizing that alcohol shortens the restorative REM stage of sleep. If you routinely deprive yourself of REM sleep, you will wake up feeling unrested and be groggy and unfocused throughout your day. Sleep loss also deteriorates your cells, which can make you age faster. While growing older brings priceless wisdom and treasured memories, it can also change your appearance in unwelcome ways. Your skin is your body’s largest organ, and it will gradually get thinner and less resilient with age, causing sagging and fine lines.
Alcohol can affect the way your body fights off life-threatening illnesses like tuberculosis or pneumonia. Researchers are also studying the possibility that alcoholic liver disease might be caused, at least in part, by your immune system attacking healthy body tissues. Again, alcohol affects the skin and can cause negative deterioration of various internal systems.
Although you can’t change your genetics, you can take control of other factors that lead to premature ageing. Stay looking younger for longer and limit unhealthy habits that speed up the ageing process. Stress causes changes in your body that affect your skin, hair, and overall health. When you’re not hydrated, your skin can look dry, flaky, and tight.
The study was conducted in over 2,000 individuals including both healthy participants and persons living with HIV. Detoxing should only be done under the care and supervision of trained medical professionals. Therefore, detox can be done at either a local medical facility, dedicated detox center, or treatment center that also offers detox services such as Grace Land Recovery. Attempting to self-detox can end up causing even more harm and can even be life-threatening. One global study found that no amount of alcohol is completely safe and that alcohol was the biggest risk factor for disease worldwide. Another more recent study found that any amount of alcohol causes harm to the brain.
This is especially true when it comes to alcohol abuse and addiction. At Grace Land Recovery, we know the challenges that come with addiction. That’s why we make it our goal to successfully treat every person that walks in our doors with a variety of traditional and alternative treatment methods. After detox has been completed, the next step is to learn how to go about life without needing alcohol anymore. Individuals completing alcohol detox should also learn ways to better take care of their bodies. For example, you can exercise and adhere to a well-balanced diet.