Author: Charles Frank

Alcoholic Eyes: The Impact Alcohol Has on Your Eyes

A person may reduce their risk of developing vision issues due to alcohol by limiting their alcohol consumption. Even small changes can help reduce a person’s risk of developing issues with their eyes or other aspects of health. A doctor can provide more details about what a person can do to address their vision issues. People may also consider quitting smoking and reducing alcohol consumption to reduce the risk of negative effects on the eyes and other aspects of health. In addition, it may have a toxic effect, which can lead to the development of conditions that impair vision.

1. A person should talk with a doctor about treatment options that will work for them.
2. From there, alcohol can cause the blood vessels in your eyes to swell, which leads to bloodshot eyes.
3. In the short term, this can have a dehydrating effect, leaving the eyes dry and irritated.
4. One of the reasons this occurs is because alcohol use can make the blood vessels in your eyes swell or even burst.
5. While there is still a lot of research to do to determine what causes this specifically, it is typically the result of alcohol’s ability to speed up the natural aging of the eyes.

It can also greatly affect outward appearance, ranging from minor skin abnormalities to potentially life-threatening conditions. The brain adapts to the dopamine response triggered by alcohol consumption, which causes neural pathways to become altered. Over time, the habit becomes a compulsive need to drink because the person has become chemically dependent on alcohol. “Alcoholic eyes” is a catchall term that refers to the adverse effects of alcoholism on eyesight and eye health. A number of studies link increased risk of cataracts to high levels of alcohol consumption compared to those who either don’t drink or drink only in moderation.

About The Right Step

As we alluded to at the top of this post, yellow eyes from drinking and certain other effects aren’t merely superficial cosmetic concerns. They can be signs that a person’s alcohol use has caused significant harm to the liver or another organ. Alcoholic myopathy is a condition that causes loss of function, strength, and deterioration of muscles after prolonged excessive alcohol consumption or binge drinking. Jaundice – Also a common by-product of liver disease, jaundice is characterized by yellowing of the skin and sclera (the whites) of the eye.

However, they may grow annoyed when people ask about their drinking. They may also need a “morning drink” to steady their nerves or deal with alcohol hangovers.[13] These signs may indicate that someone you love needs your help. Some people may experience increased sensitivity to light after consuming alcohol. Possible short-term problems relating to intoxication include blurry vision, changes in color perception, and light sensitivity.

The vision itself can also be affected by an alcohol problem, as well as eye health. These effects can lead to serious eye problems if the AUD is not curtailed and treated. Remember that an addiction to alcohol goes further than just physical harm.

Signs Your Teen Needs Residential Addiction Treatment

This six month sobriety period can allow for the liver to begin healing, which may signify that the person does not need a transplant. It can also be a test to ensure that the patient is committed to their recovery, as lifelong abstinence from alcohol use is required after a person receives a transplanted liver. ‘Alcoholic face’ or ‘puffy face’ is a result of the dehydrating effects of alcohol. Alcohol disrupts iron metabolism, a major factor in PCT, a rare skin condition causing fragility, blistering, and scarring.

Retinal disorders may be treated with injections, laser therapy, or surgery. Drinking too much alcohol can contribute to eye fatigue and strain, as you work to see clearly despite the negative impact on eyesight caused by drinking. No reliable sourcing indicates how many people experience vision issues due to alcohol.

A person should talk with a doctor about treatment options that will work for them. The potential long-term issues relate to changes to the eyes’ structures or the communication between the eyes and brain. These effects may be more permanent and can include reduced vision, migraine headaches, sensitivity to light, and even blindness. If you are asking these questions, it may be because someone has told you that you have changes to your eyes or even called them alcoholic eyes.

Your Eyes on Alcohol

For some people who develop AMD, their disease (and vision loss) develops very slowly. In other cases, the loss of vision in one or both eyes occurs quite quickly. It may appear as blank spots or areas that aren’t as bright as they were previously. This disease doesn’t lead to complete blindness, however, and it’s not painful.

What Are Alcoholic Eyes?

Without medical assistance, alcohol withdrawal can trigger potentially life-threatening symptoms. It is very common for people who have this condition to find themselves unsure of what to do to fix it. Your first step is to visit your doctor to discuss your treatment options. Be sure to provide your doctor with insight into your alcohol consumption.

Recovered is not a medical, healthcare or therapeutic services provider and no medical, psychiatric, psychological or physical treatment or advice is being provided by Recovered. If you are facing a medical emergency or considering suicide or self harm, please call 911 immediately. Alcoholic myopathy can affect appearance by decreasing muscle mass, making arms and legs appear thin and weak.

However, in the short-term, even one drink can have negative effects on the eyes (e.g., dry eyes). By this stage, the liver will have developed significant scarring. This scarring is the result of the liver attempting to repair prior damage caused by excessive alcohol consumption. Eventually, this scar tissue will prevent the liver from functioning as it should. The early stage of alcoholic liver disease involves an accumulation of excessive fat within the liver.

It’s why people who have had a stressful day might tell themselves that they would like to have a drink to help them unwind. Alcohol abuse can lead to conjunctival and corneal disorders, causing inflammation, redness, and irritation of the conjunctiva and cornea. Alcohol use and abuse can have negative effects on the eyes in both the short and long term. Law enforcement officers assess several alcohol-induced changes to the eyes when performing a field sobriety test on a suspected impaired driver.

In addition to altering how a person looks, yellow eyes from drinking and certain other physical changes may also signal serious internal problems. Alcohol-related physical symptoms can vary in how well they can be treated and how permanent the effects are. Inflammed blood vessels, rashes, sagging eyes, and odor issues can all be eased or eradicated through reduced alcohol consumption and medical treatment. Others, such as jaundice caused by liver disease and skin cancer are less treatable and are often a sign of end-stage alcoholism. Like viral hepatitis, alcoholic hepatitis also involves impaired liver functioning due to an inflammation.