Alcohol can cause mild symptoms, like making the blood vessels in your eyes to dilate, causing redness. Even small amounts of alcohol can cause dry eyes, which leads to pain. More seriously, alcohol can lead to permanent damage to the optic nerve, which may result in permanent alcohol-related blindness.
In the case of prolonged excessive drinking, changes to the eyes can be one of the ways that damage to the body becomes apparent. While some of the effects may be reversible, others can become permanent if a person continues consuming alcohol.
One drink typically raises your blood alcohol content (BAC) to 0.02-0.03% and doesn't tend to affect your vision at all. It takes a BAC of around 0.08-0.09% before your vision, motor function, reaction times, and physical coordination are affected.
Participants claim that alcohol enters the bloodstream through veins in the rear of the eye and thereby causes speedier inebriation than drinking does.
Having red eyes after drinking is one of the biggest signs that you might be struggling with an alcohol use disorder. If you are looking for the signs of alcoholic eyes in yourself or other people, you might be able to spot: Red eyes. Itchy, dry eyes.
Neurological disruptions. Alcohol slows down the communication between the eyes and the brain. This can cause double vision, decrease reaction time of pupils and impair the ability to see color shades. Unsightly appearance.
As the liver becomes more severely damaged, more obvious and serious symptoms can develop, such as: yellowing of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice) swelling in the legs, ankles and feet, due to a build-up of fluid (oedema) swelling in your abdomen, due to a build-up of fluid known as ascites.
Similarly, excessive drinking of alcohol can cause premature aging to the vitreous humour, which can trigger the development of floaters. If you want to reduce risks or prevent floaters entirely, we strongly recommend you change your lifestyle.
Alcohol also dehydrates your skin and your body, leading to irritation of the delicate skin around your eyes, causing them to appear dark and sunken. And it's no secret that too much alcohol can cause bloodshot eyes and a tired appearance. If you must partake, try to limit your intake to one glass per day.
Moreover, the risk of high IOP increased by 4.08–4.84 times in non-flushers than in non-drinkers when alcohol consumption exceeded 8 drinks a week. The results of the current study are consistent with those of previous studies, which found that alcohol consumption and IOP had a positive correlation.
Research from 2021 links moderate to high alcohol consumption with an increased risk of early AMD. This means that even moderate amounts of alcohol, such as the CDC's one- to two-drink limit, could increase a person's risk of AMD. Learn more about moderate drinking here.
Medical professionals and addiction treatment facilities often use the development of this condition as a sign that someone has an alcohol use disorder (AUD). Alcohol use disorder is the medical term for alcoholism. The yellowing of the eyes cannot be reversed or healed if the person continues to abuse alcohol.
Alcohol Can Cause Retinal Swelling and Detachment
In some extreme cases, it might even cause blindness. Fortunately, most people won't experience these side effects.
Without a sufficient amount of vitamin A, your eyes will not be able to produce the necessary pigment to see at night. Prolonged use of alcohol can significantly deplete your Vitamin A stores, greatly impacting your night vision.
High blood pressure and vision disturbance
Any change to your vision could be an indication of hypertensive retinopathy. Increased pressure in the eyes can damage the blood vessels and surrounding tissues over time, leading to various vision changes, including blurring, eye floaters and seeing double.
Eye floaters are spots in your vision. They may look to you like black or gray specks, strings, or cobwebs. They may drift about when you move your eyes.
It is estimated that alcohol-related fatty liver disease develops in 90% of people who drink more than 40g of alcohol (or four units) per day. That's roughly the equivalent of two medium (175ml) glasses of 12% ABV wine, or less than two pints of regular strength (4% ABV) beer.
When you drink alcohol, you don't digest alcohol. It passes quickly into your bloodstream and travels to every part of your body. Alcohol affects your brain first, then your kidneys, lungs and liver. The effect on your body depends on your age, gender, weight and the type of alcohol.
The historic term 'tobacco–alcohol amblyopia' refers to the occurrence of bilateral optic neuropathy in smokers consuming alcoholic beverages. Pathologic features included retinal ganglion cell loss and papillomacular degeneration.
It's thought that one of the lifestyle choices that may trigger cataracts is excessive alcohol consumption. Studies have shown that those who regularly consume large quantities of alcohol are more likely to develop cataracts.