We use evidence-based methods to help you moderate or stop drinking, and our convenient smartphone app makes the whole process portable. You no longer need to disrupt your life in order to start drinking less. Although alcohol might make you feel more relaxed in the moment, in the long run it can increase anxiety and depression, feeding into a negative cycle.
Just over half of respondents (1,727; 52.9%) reported that they drank alcohol (Appendix 1). Women aged 18 to 29 years composed the highest proportion of alcohol drinkers, but the greatest proportion of heavy drinkers was aged 50 to 69 years (Figure 2B). Wine or champagne were the most commonly consumed alcoholic beverages by women of all age groups (Figure 2C). In conclusion, alcoholism’s impact on mental health is both severe and far-reaching, manifesting as accelerated cognitive aging, memory loss, and an elevated risk of dementia.
Alcohol’s Impact on Your Liver
Chronic alcohol consumption is a significant contributor to accelerated aging, particularly through the damage it inflicts on vital organs such as the liver, heart, and brain. The liver, being the primary site of alcohol metabolism, bears the brunt of this damage. Prolonged alcohol use can lead to a spectrum of liver diseases, including fatty liver disease, alcoholic hepatitis, and cirrhosis. Fatty liver disease, the earliest stage, occurs when fat accumulates in liver cells, impairing their function.
Dehydration
With age, your liver can’t process toxins from alcohol as quickly as it used to, leaving you feeling worse for wear. Additionally, your body’s cells don’t bounce back as they once did; their repair process slows down, making recovery a lengthy ordeal. Over time, the cumulative effects of dehydration, nutrient depletion, and exposure to free radicals from alcohol can break down collagen and elastin fibers in the skin. These proteins are vital for maintaining skin elasticity and firmness. The breakdown of these fibers leads to sagging skin, deeper wrinkles, and an overall aged appearance. Additionally, as older adults face more significant life changes, such as retirement or the loss of loved ones, drinking can sometimes amplify feelings of loneliness or depression.
Alcohol and the Aging Process
Before taking any medication, you can speak with a doctor, pharmacist, or another healthcare professional to discuss whether they are safe to take with alcohol. Resulting injuries, such as broken bones, can be more difficult to recover from as an older adult because bones weaken with age. This can result in alcohol remaining in the system for longer and feelings of intoxication, or feeling “drunk” occurring sooner. Dehydrogenase, an enzyme that breaks down alcohol, becomes less active with age.
Doris Day, MD
In your younger years, your liver might process alcohol relatively quickly, making it easier for your body to bounce back after a night of drinking. A glass of wine that used to feel relaxing might now leave you feeling sluggish. Alcohol is a vasodilator, which means it causes blood vessels to relax and widen. Changes to blood vessels brought on by excess alcohol consumption can affect various parts of the body. When you lack vitamin D, it affects the body’s ability to absorb calcium. In turn, you’ll have bone loss, lower bone mass, and reduced bone density.
These effects not only diminish an individual’s quality of life but also place a significant burden on families and healthcare systems. Awareness and education about these risks are vital in encouraging early intervention and prevention. By understanding the profound connection between alcohol and cognitive decline, individuals can make informed decisions to protect their mental well-being and age gracefully. Lastly, alcohol consumption impairs the body’s ability to absorb vital nutrients, such as vitamins A, C, and E, which are essential for skin health. These nutrients act as antioxidants, protecting the skin from free radical damage and promoting collagen production.
- Chronic alcohol and substance use also has profound effects on mental health.
- It’s not just about looking older; these changes can signal deeper health problems.
- This is a stark reminder of how closely alcohol and aging are intertwined.
- You aren’t alone if you’ve ever wondered why a few drinks feel different now than they did a decade ago.
- For example, alcohol combined with allergy medications can make you extremely drowsy, or you may develop liver damage when drinking alcohol with common painkillers like Tylenol or Ibuprofen.
- Both gaining and losing weight can impact this process, and, interestingly, so does your blood alcohol level.
- Remember, if alcohol is affecting your health or lifestyle, have a conversation with your health care provider or a Banner Health specialist.
- These types of life changes can cause loneliness, anxiety, and depression.
- While a drink might make you feel drowsy at first, alcohol actually disrupts sleep cycles.
- This is often a result of alcohol-induced liver damage, which affects the body’s ability to process and eliminate toxins.
- Fatty liver disease, the earliest stage, occurs when fat accumulates in liver cells, impairing their function.
- Alcohol’s all-around negative effect on nutrition means that heavy drinkers often become malnourished.
While a drink might make you feel drowsy at first, alcohol actually disrupts sleep cycles. It can prevent you from reaching the deeper stages of sleep, alcohol and aging can drinking make you look older which are crucial for feeling rested. This decrease in water means that alcohol is less diluted when it enters your system, leading to a higher blood alcohol concentration (BAC) after drinking the same amount.
While alcohol may make you feel drowsy initially, it ultimately disrupts your normal sleep cycle. Alcohol interferes with Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep, which is crucial for memory consolidation and mental restoration. Cognitive function can be impaired without adequate REM sleep, and the aging process can be accelerated. Over time, the combination of dehydration, inflammation, and collagen breakdown can accelerate the aging process, making your skin appear older than it actually is. Without enough saliva to keep the teeth moist, plaque begins to build up. A survey of alcoholic patients in Wyoming showed that alcohol users are three times more likely to experience permanent tooth loss than adults without alcoholism.
If drinking continues, alcoholic hepatitis can develop, causing inflammation and swelling of the liver, which can lead to scarring. The most severe form, cirrhosis, involves extensive scarring that disrupts liver function, leading to liver failure and other life-threatening complications. This progressive damage not only reduces the liver’s ability to detoxify the body but also accelerates its aging process, making it less resilient and less capable of regenerating over time. Overall, 1,166 women (35.7%) were current or former smokers (Appendix 1), mostly of cigarettes (1,144/1,166; 98.1%). Women aged 50 to 75 years had the longest smoking histories (Appendix 1; Figure 2A), but the largest proportion of current smokers (131/494; 26.5%) was aged 40 to 49 years.
That’s where alcohol comes in — it dehydrates you and dries out your skin. A 2017 study involving older adult men found that they will pee more when drinking stronger alcoholic drinks, such as spirits, compared with nonalcoholic drinks. So, for an older adult already experiencing dehydration symptoms, consuming alcohol may make the symptoms worse. Coupled with a reduction in lean body mass and water, this can lead older people to experience increased blood alcohol levels compared to those of a younger person. Alcohol is a diuretic, which increases water loss through urine, leaving your skin dehydrated and dull.
Alcohol acts as a diuretic, which means it increases urine production and leads to the loss of fluids and essential electrolytes. This dehydration makes the skin appear dull, dry, and less elastic, contributing to the formation of fine lines and wrinkles. Over time, this loss of moisture can cause the skin to age prematurely, making it look rough and uneven.
In addition, excessive drinking can impair judgment and decision-making abilities, leading to risky behaviors that can have long-term consequences on your overall health and well-being. These behaviors, combined with the direct effects of alcohol on your brain, can contribute to accelerated aging. If you or a loved one is struggling with alcohol or drug addiction, reaching out for help is a crucial first step. At Little Creek Recovery, we understand how challenging it can be to ask for assistance, but our team of trained professionals is here to guide you.