Alcohol Effects on Skin: What Drinking Does to Your Face

Alcohol's effects on skin come in two waves. In the short term it widens blood vessels and causes flushing, pulls water out of the body by suppressing a fluid-saving hormone, and fragments sleep, which shows up as redness, dullness and a tired, puffy face the next morning. Over years, regular drinking is linked to more rosacea and to faster skin aging. Cutting back helps on both fronts.

Below we cover why your face goes red when you drink, what happens overnight, the long-term picture for rosacea and aging, whether alcohol causes acne, what to expect after you stop, and a damage-control routine for nights you do drink. This article is about drinking alcohol. If you're wondering about the alcohol listed in your moisturizer, that's a separate question, answered in alcohol in skincare.

What are the effects of alcohol on skin?

The main effects of alcohol on skin are flushing, dehydration, poorer sleep, inflammation and, over time, accelerated aging. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) says alcohol is rough on the skin: it dehydrates the skin and, in time, damages it. Here is how the effects line up by timescale.

Why does my face turn red when I drink?

Your face turns red because alcohol widens the small blood vessels in the skin, and in some people a slow enzyme lets a flushing chemical build up. DermNet, the dermatology reference run by New Zealand dermatologists, explains that people of Asian descent are more susceptible to alcohol flushing because many carry a defective form of the enzyme that clears acetaldehyde, which leads to a build-up of acetaldehyde. That's the "Asian glow."

Other things can make flushing worse:

• Fermented drinks: histamine or tyramine in beer, sherry and wine can trigger flushing.
• Medications: some drugs, including metronidazole and certain cephalosporin antibiotics, cause flushing when combined with alcohol. Check the leaflet or ask a pharmacist.
• Rosacea: if your face stays red long after a drink, or flushes with heat, spicy food and stress as well, rosacea is a possibility.

If you flush strongly every time you drink, that's a signal worth taking to a doctor. For other reasons a face goes red, see why is my face red.

Does alcohol dehydrate your skin?

Yes, indirectly. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) explains that alcohol suppresses the release of vasopressin, a hormone that normally tells the kidneys to hold on to water, so you lose more fluid than usual. That mild dehydration causes the thirst and headache of a hangover, and it's one reason skin can look flat and feel tight the next day.

Drinking water helps you feel better, but it won't fully cancel out the effect. Skin that is already dry or has a weak barrier tends to show it most.

Why does my face look puffy after drinking?

Morning puffiness after drinking usually comes from more than one thing at once, with poor sleep and inflammation high on the list. The NIAAA notes that people may fall asleep faster after drinking, but their sleep is fragmented and they tend to wake up earlier, and that alcohol increases inflammation in the body.

Sleep matters for skin more than people expect. In a study of 60 women, good sleepers had significantly lower signs of intrinsic aging and 30% greater skin barrier recovery at 72 hours than poor sleepers. A night of broken sleep won't age you, but regular heavy drinking means regular poor sleep. For quick fixes on a puffy morning, see puffy eyes in the morning.

Does alcohol make rosacea worse?

For many people with rosacea, yes. In a National Rosacea Society survey of 1,066 patients, 52% named alcohol as a trigger, behind sun, stress, hot weather, wind and heavy exercise.

Drinking may also raise the risk of developing rosacea in the first place. The AAD summarizes a study that followed 82,737 women over 14 years, in which the risk of rosacea increased with the amount of alcohol consumed, and women who drank white wine or liquor had a greater risk. Two other studies, one of twins and one comparing 60,042 people with rosacea to the same number without, found a slight increase. The AAD is careful to add that people who never drink can get rosacea, and that more research is needed.

If you have a face that stays red, visible blood vessels or flushing that lasts, see a dermatologist; the AAD notes that treatment can reduce redness and keep it from getting worse. To work out which drinks and situations set yours off, read rosacea triggers to avoid.

Does alcohol cause acne?

There's no strong evidence that alcohol directly causes acne. We couldn't find good-quality studies showing that drinking, on its own, produces breakouts. What drinking does bring along can still matter: sugary mixers and late-night food raise your sugar load, poor sleep and stress go together with drinking, and you may be more likely to skip your evening routine. If you see a pattern, the sugar side is covered in sugar and acne.

How much drinking is enough to affect skin?

No threshold for skin has been established, so the general health guidance is the best reference point. In the U.S., one standard drink contains about 14 grams of pure alcohol: 12 ounces of 5% beer, 5 ounces of 12% wine or 1.5 ounces of 40% spirits. The CDC describes moderate drinking as two drinks or less in a day for men and one drink or less for women, and the UK's NHS warns that regularly drinking more than 14 units a week risks damaging your health.

What happens to your skin after you quit alcohol?

The quickest changes are in hydration and sleep, which can make skin look fresher within days to weeks. Changes in redness and rosacea take longer, and lines that have already formed don't disappear. The timeline below is a reasonable expectation built from how alcohol affects the body; individual results vary.

If you drink heavily or every day, talk to a doctor before you stop. They can help you plan it safely.

How do I protect my skin when I do drink?

A little preparation limits the damage. This routine is built for the nights you drink and the morning after:

1. Alternate drinks with water, and drink a glass before bed. It won't cancel the vasopressin effect, but it helps.
2. Choose lower-alcohol drinks and skip sugary mixers. If wine flushes you, try other options and notice the difference.
3. Never sleep in makeup. Use a gentle cleanser, even if it's a quick one.
4. Apply a richer moisturizer at night to offset overnight water loss. Skip strong actives like retinoids or exfoliating acids that night if your skin feels hot or irritated.
5. In the morning, splash with cool water, moisturize and apply broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher. Flushed, dehydrated skin still needs sun protection.
6. Keep track of what you drank and how your skin looked the next day, so you can spot your own patterns.

How can a selfie scan show what drinking does to your face?

The "alcohol face before and after" photos online are rarely taken in the same light, so they're hard to trust. Your own photos, taken the same way each time, are more useful. Pori, our iPhone app, returns an overall skin score from 0 to 100 with a breakdown that includes Hydration & Moisture and Pigmentation & Tone. Its skin diary logs sleep, water, stress and diet next to each scan, and the before/after comparison lets you put a scan from a dry month next to one from a heavier one.

An app is not a diagnosis: it reads appearance only. It can't diagnose rosacea or any other condition, so see a dermatologist for redness that doesn't settle.