The truth about alcohol is, even a little alcohol isn’t good for you—especially as we get older. After conflicting and confusing research touting the health benefits of red wine, there has been compelling research and data conclusively proving alcohol will not help you live longer or improve your health. I know this news is buzz kill, especially when consuming alcohol has become the primary way we socialize and associate having fun and decompressing with having a cocktail. The main reason that drinking any amount of alcohol is harmful has to do with the fact that it metabolizes into acetaldehyde, a chemical that is toxic to cells, damages your DNA and keeps your body from repairing the damage. So, let’s dive into the specifics of the truth behind alcohol consumption and its impact on your health..
How Alcohol Harms Brain Health and Cognitive Function
While most drinkers like the way they feel after having a drink or two because it leaves them feeling relaxed and more social, even a few drinks a week can cause risks to the brain. Recent studies show that light to moderate alcohol consumption was associated with reductions in overall brain volume. That’s right, your brain shrinks and looks different when you have even a moderate amount of alcohol. This research, using a dataset of more than 36,000 adults, also showed that having one to two drinks per day was associated with changes in the brain equivalent to aging two years. Heavier drinking was linked to greater consequences and aging of the brain, including memory issues and dementia. Even moderate drinking was linked to difficulty staying sharp and focused. That’s your brain on alcohol.
Negative Effects of Alcohol on Heart Health
Recent studies also show that no amount of alcohol is good for your heart health, not even a glass of red wine. Even moderate drinking can raise your blood pressure and damage your heart muscle. Over time, this can increase your risk of heart disease and stroke. There are several impacts that alcohol has on your body that can cause high blood pressure. 1) Alcohol affects the nervous system (brain, spinal cord and nerves) which helps regulate blood pressure. 2) Alcohol impacts receptors in blood vessels near the heart that help maintain blood pressure. 3) Alcohol also increases stress hormones like cortisol which can increase heart rate and blood pressure. 4) Regular alcohol use often leads to increased body weight which is a major risk factor for high blood pressure. This is a topic that is close to my heart given that my late husband died at a young age from a heart attack. While he wasn’t a raging alcoholic by any means, he did skate the line of drinking excessively at times. The months leading up to his death had been hard for him and he was definitely drinking more excessively and I think it took a big toll on his heart. While I think he was probably genetically predisposed to heart disease (he was adopted so we didn’t know his biological family medical history), his habits certainly sped up his heart issues at an age where we wouldn’t have expected it. So while having a drink or two may help you feel relaxed in that moment, alcohol is quietly making things harder for your heart.
The Impact of Alcohol on Your Overall Health
Here’s something people don’t often think about: alcohol weakens your immune system. Yup, that glass of wine or cocktail can make you more susceptible to getting sick. Alcohol can alter your microbiome/gut health, altering the balance of proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory mediators, which can make the body more susceptible to infections. The negative line up on your immune system paints a compelling case against alcohol because 1) Alcohol can prevent the body from absorbing the nutrients it needs to be healthy. 2) Having a compromised immune system can lead to an increased risk of cancer, which is why increased use of alcohol is linked to cancer. 3) Alcohol can make it harder on your white blood cells to effectively repair infection or injury. 4) Drinking alcohol even moderately impacts your liver and it’s the organ responsible for filtering out all the toxins from alcohol, and it can only take so much. The more you drink, the more damage you’re doing to this crucial part of your body.
How Alcohol Affects Sleep Quality and Sleep Cycles
I know some people like to have a drink to “wind down,” but alcohol actually messes with your sleep big time. Sure, it might help you fall asleep faster, but it disrupts your sleep cycles and keeps you from getting that deep, restorative rest we all need. Over time, this leads to fatigue, mood swings, and even a weakened immune system. With the increased popularity of products like the Aura ring, people have become increasingly aware that their sleep patterns are majorly impacted by alcohol.
Why Alcohol is More Harmful as You Age
Here’s the thing: as we age, our bodies become less efficient at processing alcohol. What used to be a harmless glass of wine can suddenly leave you feeling groggy and unwell the next day. I don’t know about you, but my tolerance for alcohol and the effects of it the next day has definitely gotten worse once I hit my 30’s (and increasingly worse from there). And if you already have conditions like high blood pressure or diabetes, alcohol can make things even worse. So the older we get, the more careful we need to be about how much alcohol we consume. Recent studies have shown that as we age, that drink or two ages the brain twice as fast as it did when you were 30.
The Bottom Line
I’m not here to tell people what to do when it comes to drinking or not drinking, but I think it is important to shine some awareness on something we do regularly that isn’t helping us live a healthy life or age well. I personally drink socially a few times a month but do so knowing that it’s not helping me live my best life. Having had a mother that was an alcoholic and a husband with alcohol abuse issues (that ultimately killed him), I have a different relationship with alcohol than most people because I’ve seen first hand some negative impacts. Our culture has glamorized drinking and partying and while it does bring a certain social connectivity and fun, it does come at a price. Over the past few years, I’ve tried to find other ways to connect and socialize that don’t always involve drinking in an effort to have fun without the hangover. Going to concerts, playing pickleball with my friends, hiking, and cooking dinner at home with friends are a few things that I do instead of gathering at a bar or restaurant to cut down on the alcohol consumption when socializing. It’s all about making choices that support the best version of you!
