The weekend is almost here! If you’re like me, you know there’s rarely a better way to relax than to kick back and enjoy a cold beverage with friends …generally of the alcohol variety. While alcohol can help you unwind, it can also seriously damage your eyes if you consume too much of it.
We are regularly warned of the dangers of heavy alcohol consumption, noting that drinking too much contributes to heart failure, liver failure and more. But, did you know that heavy consumption can damage your vision too? I didn’t. When your liver is damaged, it affects the organ’s production of Vitamin A, an essential part of maintaining good vision.
Additionally, let’s talk about all of those delicious junk food items we consume when drinking. These foods can cause us to become malnourished and ruin a balanced diet. Most of the nutrients in your drunken eating are destroyed by the chemical imbalance that heavy drinking creates inside your body.
Most importantly, consuming enough alcohol to become intoxicated can create short-term vision problems. You might be familiar with these effects, including double vision, night blindness and accommodation paralysis (the inability to bring both near and far images into focus, a.k.a “drunk eyes”).
By keeping track of how much alcohol you’re consuming, you can lower your risk of vision damage. To drink responsibly, I suggest sticking to the one drink per hour rule. Also, additional research has shown that one glass of red wine, which has a lot of antioxidants, can reduce the risk of developing macular degeneration and lower your risk of heart problems.
With this information in mind, make sure you’re making good choices this weekend as you pour yourself a drink. If you’re worried about your eyes and/or the potential damage you might have done to them last weekend, schedule an appointment at your nearest Dr. Tavel location. We have evening and weekend hours at all 20 of our locations. You can even schedule your appointment online.
Via protect-your-eyesight.com