"Partying" and skin condition
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free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 6:33 pm

To what extent have you all noticed the effect of "partying" (by this I mean basically late nights, drinking, drug use) on skin condition?

In my experience, it's very inconsistent.

I have one friend who partied HARD from about the age of 16 until very recently (age 25) -- we're talking tried every drug on the planet, dated a weed dealer, frequently stayed up all night -- and somehow, she still looks great and could pass for about 20. Peaches n'cream skin, no blemishes, not haggard looking at all. In fact, she's been approached by strangers who have asked her if she's a model.

Meanwhile, another friend of mine was a longtime pothead (recently quit) and has been smoking cigs for years as well, and she looks years older than she should, despite having a true baby face in her younger days. It's tough to say if her "hard" lifestyle is precisely to blame for her skin condition, but I'm sure it's not helping.

Myself, I have to wonder if I had been more calm and sedate in my younger days if my face would be in better condition now. I had about 3 years as a daily marijuana user and about 5 years where binge-drinking and drug experimentation were occasional facts of life. My skin could definitely be in better shape now, and I wonder how much "partying" played a role in all of this. I lead a pretty boring and healthy lifestyle these days but it doesn't seem to be reversing the damage or helping too much.

I think a lot of this seems to boil down to (as always) genetics.

Just rambling here, but please, share your thoughts.

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 7:44 pm

I'm a strict non-smoker, but back when I used to go to bars, etc, I always noticed my skin looked TERRIBLE the day after I went to a place with a lot of smoke. Now that I'm being more careful about my appearance, I just try to avoid that scene altogether.

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 8:54 pm

Of course there are going to be a few people who can get away with doing all the things you've mentioned, without it having any adverse effects on their appearance.

Though in the main the majority of people are going to notice some negative changes. I'm sure most of us would say that too many late nights, and drinking etc doesn't leave us looking or feeling our best.
I think I heard somewhere that although genetics play a part in ageing, it's not as big a percentage as you would imagine, environmental factors play a much bigger role.

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 9:12 pm

I think when you did all the abuse plays a big role in how your skin will look ... abusing your body /system in your teens or 20's when your body is stronger and can recover easier isnt as damaging as doing all that in your 30's(or beyond) and expecting to get away with it. Its never too late to quite smoking thats for sure as that seems the worst offender you can see the damage done in 40 plus women smokers (what an incentive to stop). As far as partying goes I spent most of my 20's in party mode and spent several years working at night (drinking all night every night) and smoked 2-3 packs a day . Gave up smoking about 9 years ago(everything) and dont drink much now (on average 7 drinks(campari) a month). I went to wedding a few weeks ago and drank too much wine ...they had a few parties after and we ended up drinking and being out for about 12 hours ...wow...when I got home and looked in the mirror I was so seriously depressed..I couldnt believe how BAD I looked how horrible my skin was...that really shocked me! my all night party days are well and truely over Sad

but thats probably for the best... or at least if I ever do that again I must remember NOT to look in the mirror

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 10:04 pm

nice post! ive been thinking about this topic since the weekend. partying/drugs/drinking has really done some damage to my skin and apperance. i think in a very short period of time doing all that stuff made me age VERY quickly.. like losing elasticity or plumpness in my face, more lines, uneven and dull looking skintone, more inflammation etc. it makes me sad! i never noticed it as it was happening but now that i take a lot of time and effort into my skincare routine i notice it. i still am not super healthy or have given up partying/drinking/drugs yet but i'll keep investing in my skincare till i'm done.. or if i cant stand it anymore (seeing myself age so quickly)

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 10:12 pm

All I've got to say is at least you lived it up! Laughing

Paris

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 10:20 pm

Well my aunt is an aesthetician who recently got divorced and became an alcoholic. She would still continue her microdermabrasion sessions every week but ever since she started drinking her complexion has turned sallow-looking. She has lost her rosy glow. Some people may be blessed with good genes but you are certainly what you eat.

free skin care · Tue Jul 18, 2006 10:33 pm

In all seriousness...I'm sure that what we do to our bodies affects our skin. If drinking water can improve it, then alcohol and whatnot can wreck it.

I know that if I go out, like after a roller derby game (whether I play in it or not) I'm usually out late, in a smokey bar, and drinking...I look kinda icky the next day. My skin is usually very oily and my face is puffy.

I also take note on how my mum is now. She's in her early 60s and partied a bit when she was my age. The biggest thing is her sun worship (back when for acne they prescribed a sun lamp!) and her years of smoking (she quit a long time ago, like 18 or so years, but had smoked for 20 before then) have taken their toll on her skin. She still looks great (kudos to my mummy!) but I decided that I want to take action much earlier than she did.

Luckily I've never smoked a day in my life...anything (yes yes, prude I know Laughing

) but I've done my own partying, late nights, and hangovers.

Can't be good for me.
Confused

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 12:30 am

if I could go back and change anything I would never have smoked or cooked myself in the sun.....no paris you are not a prude! just extremely smart! ....think of all the money you save and can spend on skin care! yippee! Laughing

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 12:52 am

good topic! i have always observed how people's skin changed--i remember in college, lots of us came in fresh faced as first years and all the boozing and drugs turned most of them into hags afterwhile.

stress from school is also a look "ruiner." i remember my skin turned so nasty in college when i was a bio major for one semester, after i switched to political science and the stress level went down, my skin normalized. i vowed never to be stressed like that again. even in law school, i won't stress myself out at my skin's expense. and i have noticed many people here aging and looking like somebody else after only 1 semester of law school! and law students at my school also tend to drink and smoke like crazy to relieve stress whenever they can.

something i remembered--when i was a partyer in college (only for one semester though Smile

), i noticed whenever i woke up after a hangover, i would get weird red spots under my eye area. they went away after a few days, but i always wondered what they were.

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 3:54 am

My sister has smoked since she was 14 or 16 and is now 52. Her skin was fine till a couple of years ago, but now...It's wrinkly and baggy and eww. I think it's a combination of the normal skin changes that occur at her age, the effects of growing up/living in Southern California nearly all her life, and the smoking.

It was almost an overnight change, so I'm just saying that maybe time will tell.

Wed Jul 19, 2006 4:17 am

I don't know about long term (though look at Mick Jagger....) but I can definitely tell you that my skin and my hair reflects my lifestyle. I have been a very very bad girl while I was traveling (just lack of sleep but plenty of alcohol, coffee and fast food or no food at all *blushes*) and hence I am now paying the price. My skin looked terrible when I got back and my hair is dull and more of it is falling out than usual. I've started taking some supplements and eating well (and drinking lots of water) and things are improving. I'm also trying to ressucitate my skin with lots of DIY facials.

I usually try to eat healthy and try to drink lots of water and find that my skin holds up well but even little stresses (a few days of intensive stress - I mean actual stress and not the self-induced abuse I described above) often has a visible effect that I try to counteract with serums and masks etc

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 7:08 am

Keith Richards is a good example of what a lifetime of hard partying will do to your skin, although I doubt many of us would take it to quite his extremes Very Happy

There are a lot of other factors that affect the appearance of your skin, including among others:

Genetics
Sun Exposure
Stress
Exercise
Diet
Water Intake
Living in an area with high average sunlight hours
Living in an area with low humidity

And, last but not least, being a miserable person who is never happy.

If you've got good scores in these other areas but like to party now and then, I'm guessing your skin should be fine... just my opinion.
Balance is the key.

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 11:23 am

And I guess we all should keep WHITNEY HOUSTON in mind as an example of how much a hard lifestyle can accelerate the aging process.
Shock

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 12:10 pm

she is very very exahausted looking. and i did not know we could put in images!

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 1:12 pm

the hollowness of under cheek and under eye area in that picture scares me........ thats like one of my big concerns right now..... 'the lifestyle' sure does that to you! the first signs of aging i got was the hollowness and dark spots early this year.. since then i have cut back from that lifestyle.. when i goto parties and stuff i see a lot of girls have that hollowness (cut down on the drugs!) its such a shame too.. cause theyre pretty and have killer bods

free skin care · Wed Jul 19, 2006 1:59 pm

Not only the aging, but the degree of resilience in skin depending on changes in lifestyle, are both genetic.
I'm 30, never smoked or have had a drink in my life, don't take drugs, have always taken good care of my skin (despite lack of sunscreen in my earlier years) and I have minor sun damage but people always think I'm between 18 and 25. Of course, I think I look my age, but when I'm drinking tons of water and am religious about retinol, enough sleep, and weekly pumpkin peel and Osea white algae mask, my skin looks lovely, I must say. If I slack on any of this, my skin looks haggard and dull and I have fine lines beneath the eyes.
My mother on the other hand is a serious alcoholic and has smoked for years and worshipped the sun (she still goes to tanning salons), but she quits cold turkey every once in a while. She went in 2 weeks from a bloated, wrinkly, ugly mess to a gorgeous, thin(ner), 60-year old woman with perfectly taut, dewy skin, no wrinkles AT ALL (Boy how I hope I inherit her skin!!!) and she looks about 39-40. She's had no work done. My 80-year old grandmother is the same--her skin is just amazing, not even a fine line. I know my skin is different and I'm summoning up all the defenses. But the dramatic change in her skin with her sudden change of lifestyle was really out of this world.
She had hepatitis when she stopped and even that damage has supposedly been reversed.
--avalange

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