Even small amounts of alcohol—a single drink per day—has been linked to a higher risk of developing #AFib, a potentially dangerous irregular heart rhythm. https://bit.ly/2XRMkif#HarvardHealth
Research shows that Generation Z is drinking far less alcohol than previous generations. So what’s behind this trend – and does that mean alcohol and drug use worries are disappearing? Let’s break the topic down in this podcast with addiction psychiatrist Akhil Anand. pic.twitter.com/PrqU7IbBlP
There are many health benefits related to abstaining from alcohol. If you’re looking to cut back or stop drinking altogether, here are 11 tips that can help. #HarvardHealth
Are you concerned about your alcohol intake? Maybe you feel that you’re drinking too much or too often. Perhaps it’s a habit you’d like to better control.
It’s always wise to check with your doctor — she should be able to help you decide whether it is best for you to cut back or to abstain. People who are dependent on alcohol, or have other medical or mental health problems, should stop drinking completely.
But many people may benefit simply by cutting back. If your doctor suggests that you curb your drinking, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) suggests that the following steps may be helpful:
Put it in writing. Making a list of the reasons to curtail your drinking — such as feeling healthier, sleeping better, or improving your relationships — can motivate you.
Set a drinking goal. Set a limit on how much you will drink. You should keep your drinking below the recommended guidelines: no more than one standard drink per day for women and for men ages 65 and older, and no more than two standard drinks per day for men under 65. These limits may be too high for people who have certain medical conditions or for some older adults. Your doctor can help you determine what’s right for you.
Keep a diary of your drinking. For three to four weeks, keep track of every time you have a drink. Include information about what and how much you drank as well as where you were. Compare this to your goal. If you’re having trouble sticking to your goal, discuss it with your doctor or another health professional.
Don’t keep alcohol in your house. Having no alcohol at home can help limit your drinking.
Drink slowly. Sip your drink. Drink soda, water, or juice after having an alcoholic beverage. Never drink on an empty stomach.
Choose alcohol-free days. Decide not to drink a day or two each week. You may want to abstain for a week or a month to see how you feel physically and emotionally without alcohol in your life. Taking a break from alcohol can be a good way to start drinking less.
Watch for peer pressure. Practice ways to say no politely. You do not have to drink just because others are, and you shouldn’t feel obligated to accept every drink you’re offered. Stay away from people who encourage you to drink.
Keep busy. Take a walk, play sports, go out to eat, or catch a movie. When you’re at home, pick up a new hobby or revisit an old one. Painting, board games, playing a musical instrument, woodworking — these and other activities are great alternatives to drinking.
Ask for support. Cutting down on your drinking may not always be easy. Let friends and family members know that you need their support. Your doctor, counselor, or therapist may also be able to offer help.
Guard against temptation. Steer clear of people and places that make you want to drink. If you associate drinking with certain events, such as holidays or vacations, develop a plan for managing them in advance. Monitor your feelings. When you’re worried, lonely, or angry, you may be tempted to reach for a drink. Try to cultivate new, healthy ways to cope with stress.
Be persistent. Most people who successfully cut down or stop drinking altogether do so only after several attempts. You’ll probably have setbacks, but don’t let them keep you from reaching your long-term goal. There’s really no final endpoint, as the process usually requires ongoing effort.
Even small amounts of alcohol—a single drink per day—has been linked to a higher risk of developing #AFib, a potentially dangerous irregular heart rhythm. https://bit.ly/2XRMkif#HarvardHealth
Even small amounts of alcohol—a single drink per day—has been linked to a higher risk of developing #AFib, a potentially dangerous irregular heart rhythm. https://bit.ly/2XRMkif#HarvardHealth
It may come on in those first few sips of alcohol. Or maybe you’re hit with a hot flash whenever you’re a few drinks in. But whenever you drink, you seem to experience a sudden sensation of warmth, and your face, neck and upper chest become covered in red patches and blotchy skin.
Is facial flushing a sign that you can’t handle your alcohol? Or is this a symptom of something more severe? Dermatologist Alok Vij, MD, explains just what causes facial flushing, along with some truth behind some common misconceptions.
What causes your face to turn red when you drink alcohol?
There are a couple of different root causes for facial flushing. More technically termed the “alcohol flush reaction,” this occurs because your body either can’t fully digest the alcohol you’re consuming or because your body is having an inflammatory response to drinking alcohol.
“Your face may flush from alcohol for two reasons: Because of an enzyme deficiency or because of rosacea,” says Dr. Vij. “Both are tied to your ethnicity.”
Enzyme deficiency
Many Asian populations, specifically 35% to 45% of East Asians, have a deficiency in alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzyme that breaks down a specific substance in alcohol called acetaldehyde.
“Alcohol is toxic to cells, and when it gets into the cells of your blood vessels, it makes them dilate,” explains Dr. Vij. “This reddens the skin and can make you feel warm.”
But without enough of this enzyme, you can end up having too much acetaldehyde in your body, and this makes alcohol reach toxic levels much earlier in your cells. This results in your skin becoming flushed.
Rosacea
Fair-skinned people of Northern European backgrounds who flush when they drink may have some degree of rosacea.
You may be asking yourself this question if you’ve ever experienced facial flushing. On the surface, facial flushing might feel cosmetically embarrassing at most and may not come with any other dangerous symptoms. For those with an enzyme deficiency, facial flushing can occasionally be experienced with increased onset of nausea or vomiting because of your body’s inability to fully digest the alcohol you’re consuming.
“Alcohol most frequently passes through these sites,” states Dr. Vij. “Toxicity and DNA damage can build up in cells and, eventually, a cancer can form.”
But recent studies report that those who get an alcohol flush because of an enzyme deficiency are also at heightened risk of digestive, liver and respiratory cancers. These populations are more vulnerable to alcohol’s toxicity, as it’s processed and later eliminated in:
Your gastrointestinal (GI) tract, especially your stomach, where alcohol is absorbed.
Your liver, where alcohol is sent after it’s absorbed by your stomach.
Your lungs, where alcohol in your blood is released in your breath.
Is rosacea linked to cancer?
“We don’t think of rosacea as a precancerous disease,” Dr. Vij clarifies. “The biggest problems rosacea causes are a bulbous nose, like W.C. Fields had, and eye inflammation.”
(It was rosacea — not alcoholism — that made the storied comedian’s nose look large, red and bumpy, because of an overgrowth of the sebaceous glands, Dr. Vij adds.)
In addition, rosacea can make your eyes feel itchy, dry and chronically irritated. These eye symptoms can be managed with anti-inflammatory medication.
“We typically prescribe oral antibiotics like doxycycline or minocycline, often at lower doses than are required to kill bacteria,” he continues.
How to prevent facial flushing when drinking
If an alcohol flush makes you feel self-conscious when you drink, certain treatments can help:
Topical medications: Medicines like brimonidine (Mirvaso®) can block blood vessels in your skin from dilating.
Laser treatments: A series of laser treatments can shrink the superficial blood vessels in your skin. “You usually need three to 10 treatments to get the full effect, but it can last for years, and prevent broken blood vessels in the later stages of rosacea,” notes Dr. Vij.
But because these medications and laser treatments are considered cosmetic, they aren’t typically covered by insurance.
Are some types of alcohol more likely to cause flushing?
So, if your face flushes, are specific kinds of alcohol to blame? And can you avoid some but not others as an at-home treatment approach to facial flushing?
“It’s really patient-specific. Some people with rosacea flush more with red wine; others flush more with hard liquor,” says Dr. Vij.
If you have rosacea and keep track of what happens when you drink, you may be able to find your triggers. But if facial flushing is an issue for you at all, avoiding alcohol in all its forms might be the next best and most equitable solution.
“If flushing bothers you, and you know alcohol is a trigger, the easiest and most cost-effective solution is to avoid it,” suggests Dr. Vij.
It may come on in those first few sips of alcohol. Or maybe you’re hit with a hot flash whenever you’re a few drinks in. But whenever you drink, you seem to experience a sudden sensation of warmth, and your face, neck and upper chest become covered in red patches and blotchy skin.
Is facial flushing a sign that you can’t handle your alcohol? Or is this a symptom of something more severe? Dermatologist Alok Vij, MD, explains just what causes facial flushing, along with some truth behind some common misconceptions.
What causes your face to turn red when you drink alcohol?
There are a couple of different root causes for facial flushing. More technically termed the “alcohol flush reaction,” this occurs because your body either can’t fully digest the alcohol you’re consuming or because your body is having an inflammatory response to drinking alcohol.
“Your face may flush from alcohol for two reasons: Because of an enzyme deficiency or because of rosacea,” says Dr. Vij. “Both are tied to your ethnicity.”
Enzyme deficiency
Many Asian populations, specifically 35% to 45% of East Asians, have a deficiency in alcohol dehydrogenase, the enzyme that breaks down a specific substance in alcohol called acetaldehyde.
“Alcohol is toxic to cells, and when it gets into the cells of your blood vessels, it makes them dilate,” explains Dr. Vij. “This reddens the skin and can make you feel warm.”
But without enough of this enzyme, you can end up having too much acetaldehyde in your body, and this makes alcohol reach toxic levels much earlier in your cells. This results in your skin becoming flushed.
Rosacea
Fair-skinned people of Northern European backgrounds who flush when they drink may have some degree of rosacea.
You may be asking yourself this question if you’ve ever experienced facial flushing. On the surface, facial flushing might feel cosmetically embarrassing at most and may not come with any other dangerous symptoms. For those with an enzyme deficiency, facial flushing can occasionally be experienced with increased onset of nausea or vomiting because of your body’s inability to fully digest the alcohol you’re consuming.
“Alcohol most frequently passes through these sites,” states Dr. Vij. “Toxicity and DNA damage can build up in cells and, eventually, a cancer can form.”
But recent studies report that those who get an alcohol flush because of an enzyme deficiency are also at heightened risk of digestive, liver and respiratory cancers. These populations are more vulnerable to alcohol’s toxicity, as it’s processed and later eliminated in:
Your gastrointestinal (GI) tract, especially your stomach, where alcohol is absorbed.
Your liver, where alcohol is sent after it’s absorbed by your stomach.
Your lungs, where alcohol in your blood is released in your breath.
Is rosacea linked to cancer?
“We don’t think of rosacea as a precancerous disease,” Dr. Vij clarifies. “The biggest problems rosacea causes are a bulbous nose, like W.C. Fields had, and eye inflammation.”
(It was rosacea — not alcoholism — that made the storied comedian’s nose look large, red and bumpy, because of an overgrowth of the sebaceous glands, Dr. Vij adds.)
In addition, rosacea can make your eyes feel itchy, dry and chronically irritated. These eye symptoms can be managed with anti-inflammatory medication.
“We typically prescribe oral antibiotics like doxycycline or minocycline, often at lower doses than are required to kill bacteria,” he continues.
How to prevent facial flushing when drinking
If an alcohol flush makes you feel self-conscious when you drink, certain treatments can help:
Topical medications: Medicines like brimonidine (Mirvaso®) can block blood vessels in your skin from dilating.
Laser treatments: A series of laser treatments can shrink the superficial blood vessels in your skin. “You usually need three to 10 treatments to get the full effect, but it can last for years, and prevent broken blood vessels in the later stages of rosacea,” notes Dr. Vij.
But because these medications and laser treatments are considered cosmetic, they aren’t typically covered by insurance.
Are some types of alcohol more likely to cause flushing?
So, if your face flushes, are specific kinds of alcohol to blame? And can you avoid some but not others as an at-home treatment approach to facial flushing?
“It’s really patient-specific. Some people with rosacea flush more with red wine; others flush more with hard liquor,” says Dr. Vij.
If you have rosacea and keep track of what happens when you drink, you may be able to find your triggers. But if facial flushing is an issue for you at all, avoiding alcohol in all its forms might be the next best and most equitable solution.
“If flushing bothers you, and you know alcohol is a trigger, the easiest and most cost-effective solution is to avoid it,” suggests Dr. Vij.
Research shows that Generation Z is drinking far less alcohol than previous generations. So what’s behind this trend – and does that mean alcohol and drug use worries are disappearing? Let’s break the topic down in this podcast with addiction psychiatrist Akhil Anand. pic.twitter.com/PrqU7IbBlP
Even small amounts of alcohol—a single drink per day—has been linked to a higher risk of developing #AFib, a potentially dangerous irregular heart rhythm. https://bit.ly/2XRMkif#HarvardHealth
Research shows that Generation Z is drinking far less alcohol than previous generations. So what’s behind this trend – and does that mean alcohol and drug use worries are disappearing? Let’s break the topic down in this podcast with addiction psychiatrist Akhil Anand. pic.twitter.com/PrqU7IbBlP
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