NBC News spoke to eight nutritionists and doctors about the risks and supposed benefits of alcohol. They generally agreed that abstaining is healthiest, but that for most people, a modest level of drinking doesn’t carry significant risk. When doctors consider the way that drinking large amounts of alcohol affects does drinking alcohol make you look older the body’s aging process, they have come to a few conclusions. First, medical professionals explain that early signs of aging stem from the fact that alcohol speeds the release of stress hormones in the body. Besides physical appearance, most individuals are conscious about the way that they smell.
Depending on the type of coffee you drink, for example, you could be aiding the development of skin dryness—one change related to aging skin.
Such comparisons might have previously made light drinkers appear healthier by contrast.
Meanwhile, a study published last month showed that deaths related to excessive drinking are rising in the United States, especially among women.
Coffee is the biggest source of caffeine, a substance that occurs naturally in coffee beans, and added sugar is often in on-the-go or homemade coffees.
If you were thinking it’s enough to swap out dessert for a cocktail to account for the added calories, think again.
Older adults who regularly drink alcohol are at higher risk of dying from cancer, study finds
This is especially important as many adults are drinking in high amounts. 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. Binge drinking is typically defined as consuming four or more drinks within two hours for women and five or more drinks within two hours for men. While the causal relationship between frequent and heavy alcohol consumption in older adults and cognitive decline is not certain, research has shown a correlation between the two, especially in men. The total amount of water in one’s body also decreases with age. This means that when alcohol is consumed, more of it ends up in the bloodstream, which amplifies its effects on the body.
What your biological age can reveal about your health
Back in my 20s, it would have taken four or five drinks to make me feel this way. Pounding water and electrolytes like I did when I was younger was no longer a fix. A RAND corporation study found a 41% increase of heavy drinking (four or more drinks on one occasion) among women during the pandemic. Other preexisting medical conditions also can get worse with drinking, including diabetes, high blood pressure, congestive heart failure and osteoporosis. 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.
Alcohol’s Effects on the Hair
But in reality, when we cause damage to the inside, it will inevitably show on the outside. We should be concerned that alcohol can make us look older. The effects of alcohol aging are very real, and we can all see the appearance of those worrying alcohol wrinkles.
Alcohol and the Aging Process
For context, a standard drink in the U.S. contains about 14 grams of alcohol. That reduction in risk could be due to slower alcohol absorption, or it might reflect other healthy lifestyle choices these people made, Ortolá suggested. These latest findings echo other research that suggests consuming just one alcoholic beverage per day can shorten a person’s life span by approximately two and a half months.
Weight loss is one of many reasons to consume alcohol more mindfully or stop altogether.
When it comes to the cardiovascular benefits of alcohol, the results are mixed.
The biggest visible change that alcohol makes to the body is one that is actually indirectly made.
However, the researchers explain, this could result from reverse causation — that is, people may have stopped drinking when their health became poor.
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. This delayed healing response contributes to inflammation, chronic pain and recurrent infections.
Heavy smokers also had a greater likelihood of developing the age-related eye rings compared to non-smokers. Liver disease caused by alcohol use can cause hyperpigmentation, palmar erythema, jaundice, generalized pruritus, and caput medusae. Alcohol can change the appearance of your mouth and the skin on your face.
How Alcohol Impacts the Gut Microbiome
Over time, it also can damage the cerebellum, the area in your brain that handles balance and coordination. 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. Regular drinkers can trigger biological functions that make them age from the inside out. If you drink heavily or consistently, you could activate the aging process, putting you at risk of health conditions that typically affect older people.
Or, they could create additive side effects such as heightened drowsiness or an increased risk of gastrointestinal bleeding, says Moore. If you’re taking any medication, be sure to read the package label and insert carefully—and/or talk to your doctor—to see if you should abstain from drinking alcohol altogether. The decline in the body’s water content is significant because “alcohol is a water-soluble substance,” says Alison Moore, director of the Stein Institute for Research on Aging and the UC San Diego Center for Healthy Aging. Drinking heavily and often can have a significant impact on your overall health. It can also age you prematurely, making you look, feel, and act older than you actually are.
Even light drinking is harmful to older adults, study warns: ‘From the first drop’
Free radicals are unstable molecules that may trigger a process that can lead to cell damage. This damage may affect your skin’s ability to protect itself and generate collagen. Dry skin is one indicator of aging skin, and dehydration can contribute to dry skin. To reduce further dehydration, one recommendation is to avoid caffeine and sugar. Researchers also found that caffeine can decrease the creation of collagen, a protein that keeps skin firm and healthy, in human skin cells. Do you want to avoid the risk that alcohol makes you look older?
8 Foods That Age You and Alternatives
NBC News spoke to eight nutritionists and doctors about the risks and supposed benefits of alcohol. They generally agreed that abstaining is healthiest, but that for most people, a modest level of drinking doesn’t carry significant risk. When doctors consider the way that drinking large amounts of alcohol affects does drinking alcohol make you look older the body’s aging process, they have come to a few conclusions. First, medical professionals explain that early signs of aging stem from the fact that alcohol speeds the release of stress hormones in the body. Besides physical appearance, most individuals are conscious about the way that they smell.
Older adults who regularly drink alcohol are at higher risk of dying from cancer, study finds
This is especially important as many adults are drinking in high amounts. 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. Binge drinking is typically defined as consuming four or more drinks within two hours for women and five or more drinks within two hours for men. While the causal relationship between frequent and heavy alcohol consumption in older adults and cognitive decline is not certain, research has shown a correlation between the two, especially in men. The total amount of water in one’s body also decreases with age. This means that when alcohol is consumed, more of it ends up in the bloodstream, which amplifies its effects on the body.
What your biological age can reveal about your health
Back in my 20s, it would have taken four or five drinks to make me feel this way. Pounding water and electrolytes like I did when I was younger was no longer a fix. A RAND corporation study found a 41% increase of heavy drinking (four or more drinks on one occasion) among women during the pandemic. Other preexisting medical conditions also can get worse with drinking, including diabetes, high blood pressure, congestive heart failure and osteoporosis. 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.
Alcohol’s Effects on the Hair
But in reality, when we cause damage to the inside, it will inevitably show on the outside. We should be concerned that alcohol can make us look older. The effects of alcohol aging are very real, and we can all see the appearance of those worrying alcohol wrinkles.
Alcohol and the Aging Process
For context, a standard drink in the U.S. contains about 14 grams of alcohol. That reduction in risk could be due to slower alcohol absorption, or it might reflect other healthy lifestyle choices these people made, Ortolá suggested. These latest findings echo other research that suggests consuming just one alcoholic beverage per day can shorten a person’s life span by approximately two and a half months.
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. This delayed healing response contributes to inflammation, chronic pain and recurrent infections.
Heavy smokers also had a greater likelihood of developing the age-related eye rings compared to non-smokers. Liver disease caused by alcohol use can cause hyperpigmentation, palmar erythema, jaundice, generalized pruritus, and caput medusae. Alcohol can change the appearance of your mouth and the skin on your face.
How Alcohol Impacts the Gut Microbiome
Over time, it also can damage the cerebellum, the area in your brain that handles balance and coordination. 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. Regular drinkers can trigger biological functions that make them age from the inside out. If you drink heavily or consistently, you could activate the aging process, putting you at risk of health conditions that typically affect older people.
Or, they could create additive side effects such as heightened drowsiness or an increased risk of gastrointestinal bleeding, says Moore. If you’re taking any medication, be sure to read the package label and insert carefully—and/or talk to your doctor—to see if you should abstain from drinking alcohol altogether. The decline in the body’s water content is significant because “alcohol is a water-soluble substance,” says Alison Moore, director of the Stein Institute for Research on Aging and the UC San Diego Center for Healthy Aging. Drinking heavily and often can have a significant impact on your overall health. It can also age you prematurely, making you look, feel, and act older than you actually are.
Even light drinking is harmful to older adults, study warns: ‘From the first drop’
Free radicals are unstable molecules that may trigger a process that can lead to cell damage. This damage may affect your skin’s ability to protect itself and generate collagen. Dry skin is one indicator of aging skin, and dehydration can contribute to dry skin. To reduce further dehydration, one recommendation is to avoid caffeine and sugar. Researchers also found that caffeine can decrease the creation of collagen, a protein that keeps skin firm and healthy, in human skin cells. Do you want to avoid the risk that alcohol makes you look older?