Alcohol and Aging: Does Drinking Make You Look Older?

Alcohol crosses the blood brain barrier, which plays a role in its depressive and addictive effects. Some people even go so far as to try to find out what is the healthiest alcohol and we have a clear answer to that! The effect of alcohol on your immune system and the way your circulatory system works affect the skin too. Drinking alcohol can cause or worsen psoriasis3 (a condition that causes flaky skin) and rosacea4 (redness or flushing on the face). Vidya Rao is a freelance writer and multimedia content creator with more than a decade of experience specializing in wellness, food and small business journalism.

Support organizations for managing your alcohol use

For example, drinking alcohol when you take aspirin can raise your chances of stomach problems or internal bleeding. Mixing it with certain sleeping pills, pain medications, or anxiety drugs can be life-threatening. Red wine has antioxidants called polyphenols that may help your cholesterol level and protect your blood vessels. If you drink it in moderation (about one glass a day), some studies show that it might be good for your heart. But too much can lead to an abnormal heartbeat and high blood pressure. So if you don’t drink, this isn’t a good reason to start.

If You Think You Have an Alcohol Problem

Among very heavy drinkers, alcohol metabolism and the resulting inflammation may even contribute to serious brain damage, possibly including shrinkage of the brain or alcohol-induced dementia, Wakeman says. No matter what level of fitness you are at, your body will benefit from regular exercise and movement. We need fresh air to pump up the blood with a supply of oxygen. We need to increase the circulation of the blood to all parts of the body, and especially to the fine blood vessels under the skin. Exercise is important to maintain healthy muscles, https://yourhealthmagazine.net/article/addiction/sober-houses-rules-that-you-should-follow/ avoid fat deposition, and to keep that healthy appearance which makes us look younger.

Some vitamins are actually depleted by the presence of alcohol. Alcohol is a solvent and it can reduce the healthy fats such as vitamin E. When we drink too much alcohol, the body can actually become undernourished.

• Just try to avoid groups or events that might entice you to drink.
• According to the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, administered by the U.S. federal government, about 20% of adults 60 to 64 and about 10% of those 65 and older say they binge drink.
• Our body needs thiamine to metabolize carbohydrates, amino acids, and fatty acids.
• Due to issues like these, heavy drinking leads to weight gain that becomes increasingly hard to lose and can make you look years older.
• No matter what level of fitness you are at, your body will benefit from regular exercise and movement.

Every alcoholic drink goes “straight to your head,” or at least to your brain. Heavy drinking over a long time can shrink brain cells and lead to alcohol-related brain damage (ARBD) and certain types of dementia. Symptoms of that include lack of judgment, organization, or emotional control, trouble staying focused, and anger issues. Anton emphasizes that exercise doesn’t necessarily have a direct effect on how alcohol is metabolized, so it shouldn’t be an excuse to start drinking.

When we don’t have the right balance of vitamins and nutrients, then we have a direct cause of poor health. And this is way in which drinking alcohol can make you look older. Alcohol is almost entirely empty calories, and prolonged alcohol consumption causes gut inflammation that can prevent your body from absorbing essential nutrients from the foods you eat.

Everyone ages differently so your chronological age and biological age may be the same or they can be different. Some factors, like stress, can make your cells age faster. As your cells get older, they lose their ability to regenerate and repair themselves.

Alcohol Affects Your Body’s Restorative Abilities

Would you eat that entire box of donuts if you were sober? Alcohol reduces the amount of vasopressin that your body makes. That’s why you often have to urinate more frequently when you’re drinking. Normally, the body creates a hormone called vasopressin, which helps your body retain water, limiting the amount of fluid that you Sober House Rules: What You Should Know Before Moving In excrete through the renal system. This helps prevent you from becoming dehydrated when you’re not drinking.

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 leads to weight gain that becomes increasingly hard to lose and can make you look years older. It can deteriorate your skin, muscles, organs, and brain. As you age, the body’s mechanisms that protect you from free radicals diminish. Therefore, you’re at a greater risk of developing a wide range of health problems, including the neurodegenerative conditions that affect your cognition and memory.

The Gut’s Connection to Alcohol and Aging

• Moreover, the older you get, the more likely you are to be dehydrated.
• As you progress, you may notice that you look and feel more energetic, dynamic and youthful.
• Take the yellowish plaques above your eyes, for instance.
• By contrast, another 2023 study found similar rates of death between nondrinkers and light to moderate drinkers.
• If you routinely deprive yourself of REM sleep, you will wake up feeling unrested and be groggy and unfocused throughout your day.

And when those changes feel overwhelming, alcohol can seem like a convenient way to cope. This delayed healing response contributes to inflammation, chronic pain and recurrent infections. This can affect your personality, making you act and feel older than you are.

We recently launched our in-app chatbot, Melody, powered by the world’s most powerful AI technology. Melody is here to help as you adjust to a life with less (or no) alcohol. 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!

That damage can, in turn, contribute to diabetes, heart disease, neurodegenerative illnesses and other age-related conditions you want to avoid. While those dark circles under your eyes, sometimes referred to as allergic shiners, can be caused by a lot of factors (including, obviously, allergies), your after-work wine isn’t helping. When alcohol dehydrates your body, it’s easier to see the blood vessels on that part of your face.

Does Drinking Alcohol Cause Wrinkles?

“Contrary to popular opinion, alcohol is not good for the heart,” the World Heart Foundation wrote in a 2022 policy brief. Drinking in excess is, in fact, linked to high blood pressure, abnormal heart rhythms, and sometimes even heart failure, according to American Heart Association researchers. Drinking alcohol seems to change the way the body metabolizes estrogen, leading to higher levels of the hormone. This may translate to an increased risk of estrogen-related breast cancers. Researchers are still learning about exactly how alcohol affects hormones, according to the recent Surgeon General report.

Alcohol is a depressant, which is why it can initially help you snooze — but that means it can also worsen mood swings. Women prone to or experiencing depression should consider minimizing or avoiding alcohol, advised Juliana Kling, M.D., M.P.H., assistant director of the Women’s Health Center at the Mayo Clinic. Stay on top of latest health news from Harvard Medical School.