How Alcohol Affects Your Vision
Alcohol consumption can lead to more than blurry vision and bloodshot eyes. Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol over time can lead to temporary or permanent vision loss. Here’s how alcohol affects your vision and eye health.
Temporary Effects of Alcohol on Eye Health
Having “one too many” drinks in an evening can cause blood sugar levels to spike, leading to blurred vision. Excessive drinking also causes your brain to malfunction, slowing the communication between your eyes and brain. It can also impair the function of the muscles around the eyes, which can cause double vision. Additionally, when you’re under the influence of alcohol, your pupils dilate more slowly, and you can lose the ability to differentiate between certain colours.
In addition to the impairing effects of overindulging, excessive drinking can affect the feeling and appearance of your eyes. It can cause them to turn red because consuming alcohol causes the vessels in your eyes to swell and fill with blood – hence the term bloodshot eyes. Your eyes may also get very dry because alcohol is a diuretic, making you urinate more and causing dehydration.
Permanent Effects of Alcohol on Eye Health
Besides temporary effects like blurry vision and dry, bloodshot eyes, excessive drinking regularly can also cause permanent vision loss.
Research has linked alcoholism to an increased risk of developing macular degeneration and optic neuropathy, diseases that can lead to blindness if left untreated. The exact relationship between alcohol abuse and these diseases isn’t fully understood, but researchers suggest it may be due to a vitamin A deficiency, which is often correlated with alcoholism.
Treating Alcohol-Related Vision Problems
Some temporary vision and eye health problems from drinking can be easily treated. For example, many eye care products can treat dry eyes and reduce redness.
To avoid more severe health consequences, have your eyes checked annually, whether you drink heavily or not. A general eye exam can help you catch and treat eye diseases like macular degeneration before they cause vision loss.
More importantly, if you feel you may be addicted to alcohol and are experiencing vision loss or other symptoms of alcoholism, seek treatment with an addictions centre or Alcoholics Anonymous in Edmonton. Admitting you need help takes courage. Besides vision loss, regular alcohol consumption affects your mental health, liver, and other organs.
Eye Exams in Edmonton and the Surrounding Area
At Optometrists’ Clinic Inc., our eye doctors can spot the early stages of eye diseases like macular degeneration during a general eye exam. We also provide solutions for dry eyes and other eye health problems. Contact us today to schedule an exam and consult one of our optometrists in Edmonton, Westlock, or Leduc.
