Broadly, smoking (be it cigarettes or vapes) reduces oxygen and nutrient delivery in other organs, including your skin, Cohn said. This can show up as blood vessel damage, wrinkling, or dehydration. Everyday choices you make can speed up the aging process and make you look older. While changing up your skincare routine or diet can feel less impactful than a chemical peel, those micro-habits add up in the long run.
to get started
This is the perfect storm for osteoporosis, bone brittleness, sudden fractures, and other complications. If you have crepe-like creases, they might not be wrinkles at all. If your body is exposed to the sun, the general recommendation is one ounce of sunscreen. Most sunscreen bottles are between 6 to 8 ounces, meaning “you drug addiction should be really going through your sunscreen bottles very quickly,” Castilla said.
What Drinking Does to Your Face and Skin
- After two decades of hitting the bottle hard, your body takes a beating.
- Popular methods such as meditation, yoga, therapy, and exercise may help if you drink to manage mental health conditions.
- Also, alcohol can damage the liver, which is responsible for the detoxification of the body.
- But now you know that it can also be a reason you look and feel much older than you really are.
Alcohol toxicity erodes the tiny hair cells of the vestibular balance system and cerebellar pathways that coordinate head and body orientation during movement. Destruction of these sensors throws off your balance, especially with your eyes closed or when walking in darkness. Drugs and alcohol together can wreck the immune system and cause irreparable damage.
Gateway Foundation Hosts its Annual Connecting for Recovery Luncheon
It dehydrates, disrupts sleep, accelerates wrinkles, and even impacts brain health. But before you swear off your favorite tipple, there’s hope. Understanding alcohol’s effects can help you make better choices without giving up the things you enjoy. It impairs blood flow, damages connective tissues, and promotes wrinkle formation.
- When participants also were given an infusion of alcohol, this decreased by another 19%.
- So not only are more of us drinking, but we’re drinking more.
- All in all, the sooner you quit or moderate your drinking, the better.
- The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) states that alcohol damages neurons, which can accelerate cognitive decline.
Receive free access to exclusive content, a personalized homepage based on your interests, and a weekly newsletter with topics of your choice. One of the best things you can do for your all-around health and appearance is to drink less alcohol. But at Ria Health, we recognize that this can be easier said than done. Many people struggle with alcohol dependency, and it can be hard to know how to begin to cut back. It can impact your physical, emotional, and spiritual health, too—making you does alcohol make you look older not only look but also feel older than you are.
Alcohol and aging FAQ
Chronic alcohol use also can damage the brain and exacerbate the effects of certain diseases. Research has shown that excessive alcohol use can diminish white matter in the brain. White matter lies under the brain’s gray matter and is the network of nerve fibers that transmit information throughout the brain. But drinking like you used to can lead to even bigger problems. Alcohol tolerance can be significantly diminished as people age, and the effects of alcohol can be exacerbated due to an array of factors.
Here is a closer look at how a person’s looks suffer from excessive alcohol consumption. Chronic alcohol and substance use also has profound effects on mental health. Long-term alcohol abuse can lead to severe conditions like depression, anxiety, and an increased risk of dementia, which significantly accelerate the aging process. These mental health issues can diminish cognitive function, leading to memory loss, confusion, and an overall decline in quality of life. The emotional toll of addiction also exacerbates stress, which is known to age both the body and mind prematurely.
Both acute and chronic excessive alcohol consumption can disrupt the heart’s circuitry, leading to arrhythmias and other age-related cardiovascular issues. Obviously, the smartest way to prevent aging from alcohol consumption is by lowering daily intake. However, when a person has a preoccupation with alcohol, he or she may lose control and have the inability to stop. This person may develop a tolerance, which means that he or she must drink more and more to get the same pleasing effects. When addiction occurs, alcohol interferes with work and social interactions.
Regular alcohol consumption can also cause hyperpigmentation, where certain areas of the skin become darker than the surrounding skin. This is often a result of alcohol-induced liver damage, which affects the body’s ability to process and eliminate toxins. Additionally, alcohol dilates blood vessels, leading to persistent redness, particularly on the face. Over time, these dilated vessels can become permanent, resulting in visible red or purple capillaries, especially around the nose and cheeks. Many people like to enjoy a glass of wine with dinner or have a beer when out socializing. However, drinking excessive amounts on a regular basis puts you at risk of developing alcohol use disorder (AUD), also known as alcohol dependence, alcoholism, and alcohol abuse.
Alcohol Affects Your Blood Vessels
Replenishing vitamin D levels requires abstinence from alcohol so your organs can efficiently process and circulate it. Binge drinking causes low zinc levels by disrupting its absorption from your digestive tract. Anyone struggling with alcohol abuse or addiction is welcome in our alcohol addiction treatment program. Our dedicated team of professionals is here to guide and support you in your addiction recovery journey, laying the foundation for long-term sobriety and relapse prevention.