Why Limiting Your Cocktails Can Make You Look Younger
“Ugh… I need a drink!” Chances are you have said this before. It’s easy in today’s world to get stressed out and feel like having a cocktail to ease your tension will help you out. Our world’s are often revolving around the social scene where drinks are always flowing. Even with work, we find ourselves in happy hours or a celebratory glass of bubbly.
When you stop to really think about it, alcohol is everywhere in the American culture. However, consuming alcohol every day can take a real toll on your body in ways you may not even be realizing.
The Obvious
Hangovers. They are just dumb. Ugh. No one wants to wake up with a headache and an extreme need to pee. It makes the pain worse! Often you just feel down and out, depressed even. This can lead to a day of blah which could end up with you not eating or drinking properly to give your body the daily nutrition it needs. The older you get, the longer hangovers tend to last. Forgetfulness can also plague you when hungover which can be a real damper to your work productivity.
Lack of motivation. It is tough to get out of bed after a night of drinking and put in a full workout. For that matter, to put in any workout at all. This can also trickle into your ability to be productive in the day. Feeling accomplished and good about yourself does trickle into how you look and how your skin appears.
Failure to clean your face at night. Removing your makeup each night is especially important when you wear traditional foundation. If you are one who tends to skip this step after you have had a few drinks, you are blocking your pores from breathing while you sleep, not to mention potentially making a mess of your pillow cases. While we sleep, our bodies go through a regeneration process to help repair and renew. It is super important to give your face a chance to breath overnight after a long day of having foundation on. Soap and water always works best, but having makeup removing wipes by your bed stand is always a great second choice to make it easier on yourself.
How does alcohol affect the skin?
With the body being 90% water, dehydration from drinking effects the entire ecosystem if you will of your body. You may have experienced this after a weekend of drinking- your skin feels dry, you may even get more breakouts than normal as your body is trying to flush itself of the toxins. Without proper hydration to your skin, wrinkles will show more and often you will lead to having more oily skin as your body is compensating for the lack of moisture. Hydration of your skin improves its elasticity which is how you reduce those wrinkles from showing.
This dehydration speeds up the signs of aging. You can see puffiness, discoloration, and the constant look of being tired. You may also see redness in your skin that is caused from the inflammation that alcohol causes. With excessive drinking over the years, this can end up being permanent.
What happens when I stop drinking alcohol?
When your body metabolizes alcohol, the toxins that are created are very harmful to the body. Your liver has to work extra hard to fix things and help the body process and move on from this. Clearly it is not just your skin that will have negative side effects. Your liver can have permanent damage as well. The body is an amazing organism that has the ability to regenerate itself that can be noticed in as little as two weeks after you stop drinking. It is wise to shoot for the month off from alcohol however to gain the full detox from your body. That doesn’t mean that after you should return to daily drinks! Moderation is key for all consumed products in life.
After a month of not drinking alcohol, not only will you have more cash in your pocket, you also may notice you feel happier and have more energy. Yes, your skin will have a new found glow! The lack of alcohol means your liver can go to work freely, your skin can soak up that water you are drinking, and your blood pressure could be lowered. Think drinking is the answer when stressed out? Think again. Drinking is great in the moment, however after when your body has to do all that extra work tomorrow which strains your whole system.
Alcohol is EVERYWHERE! How can I successfully stop drinking?
We know! and we are glade you asked. It is incredibly hard to stop consuming anything in your diet all at once and frankly it can be overwhelming. Quitting anything “cold turkey” is for the birds! The key to being successful that we have found is to prepare yourself in advanced and only cut out one thing at a time. In this case, we mean only cut alcohol out and don’t also try to suddenly go vegan. A plant based diet will also help you but take steps to ensure success.
Give yourself “splurge” alternatives: part of drinking at the end of the day can often be correlated to a reward. You make healthy choices all day long, maybe drink your 8x8oz of water, or just need that pure enjoyment after a long day. Instead of reaching for the wine, have fancy sparkling waters, teas, or even kombucha. Avoid jumping to sodas but spend a little more to get drinks you might not always stock that can be really enjoyable. Kombucha is a big one that can really feel like you are having a drink. Right before bed a nice tea (we really like those Yogi teas!) not only will make you just smile, you’ll ease stress and tensions to doze off peacefully. When you do the math, these alternatives are still less than what you probably would spend on booze or about the same!
Have non-alcoholic cocktails/beer: Believe it or not, there is a growing market of non-alcoholic spirits and brews. There are even some alcohol removed wines, although we have yet to really try those. The spirits are great and give you that cocktail taste and fancy feeling without the actual alcohol itself. Many of the big beer companies and many smaller ones too have great tasting beer that is non-alcoholic. Imagine cheering on your favorite football team all day long and having no hangover or buzzy feeling?! Fabulous. We don’t think this option should be consumed as much as the splurge alternatives and would advise that it could lead you to “cheating” with an actual drink but it is an interesting and effective option for many people.
Tell your friends, family, and coworkers what you are up to: Do not be shy about it! And do not feel the need to explain or apologize or feel bad about your choice. You have every right to choose not to drink and letting others know that you are taking a break will go a long way in their support. When they know you are not drinking, they tend to catch themselves and try to accommodate you as best they can. You may be surprised to find that they want to join you- at least for the time they are with you!
Ask for a non-alcoholic drink when out: You may be thinking, no way do all the places I go have non-alcoholic options beyond soda water. Well you are probably right that not ALL the places will have great option, however you will find that most bars will have at least 1 non-alcoholic beer and maybe even a bartender who has been thinking about trying to make fun tasty mocktails (aka non-alcoholic cocktails). Again, kombucha has grown in popularity and is a fabulous option that more and more places are offering.
The choice is always up to you, and yes a single glass of red wine is better than lots of cocktails or a few beers but- and we really mean this- you need to have everything in moderation. If you really want to be living your best life and maintain your youth or simply have a healthy appearance, you really need to take back your health by limiting your alcohol intake and consider giving yourself a break from alcohol all together for a month to let your body revitalize and refresh. We promise this is one of the least expensive ways to achieve real results and have a happier life overall!