Hungover Skin Is a Thing — Here’s How to Rehydrate It Quickly

The odd hangover is to be expected when consuming alcohol. One thing you might not expect is the effect alcohol can have on your skin. In fact, your skin can also be hungover following a few bevvies thanks to a lack of hydration in your body.

Have you ever noticed that your skin looks a little worse for wear after a night of drinking? It’s common to experience dryness, dullness and dehydrated skin post-alcohol consumption as well as breakouts, puffiness, inflammation and redness.

So, how can you help your skin bounce back from a night on the town (or, in the house, for those in lockdown)? X50 lifestyle nutritionist and dietitian Tara Kaff revealed four expert-approved tips on how you can mitigate the effects of your hangover on your skin.

Rehydrate, Rehydrate, Rehydrate

To combat the dehydration, it’s best to tackle this on the inside and outside to add moisture back into your body. This means upping your water consumption, while also using hydrating treatments on your skin.

“Doing that ‘hair of the dog’ ritual doesn’t work for your skin, so the first step in combating dehydrated skin is to quite literally quench your thirst,” said Kaff.

“Skin needs to be treated internally as well as externally and although there’s a huge array of topical treatments for dry skin, you still need to feed it from within. Added bonus points are rewarded, so step it up a notch with chilled citrus, cucumber and mint infused water to absorb the anti-inflammatory properties within the fruit.”

Calm Inflammation and Redness

“Inflammation is our bodies natural response to injuries, infections and excess consumption of acidic or inflammatory foods (read: alcohol and sugar), so try sipping on a herbal elixir such as an anti-inflammatory tea — like the X50 Antiflam blend herbal tea — to decrease inflammation, redness and stiffness, assisting the body to restore and deflate,” said Kaff.

“The therapeutic nature will also regulate the body’s fluid retention. Suffering from puffiness in a particular area, such as underneath the eye? Try on a treatment eye mask for size and watch them blitz away the appearance of dark circles.”

Antioxidant Boost

“Alcohol is oxidative, meaning it causes skin damage and premature ageing, thus counteracting the damage with antioxidants is essential,” said Kaff.

“Whipping up a smoothie will be the quickest and tastiest way to load up on antioxidants. Fresh orange juice has an acid-neutralising effect when it’s metabolised, and delivers potassium. Other blender essentials include banana, spinach, mango and watermelon, which is packed with water for more rehydration.”

Try a Little Exercise

It’s probably the last thing you feel like doing after drinking but exercise can actually help with your hangover and improve the state of your skin. You don’t need to head to a HIIT class to do this, but consider engaging in some gentle movement.

“After drinking, all the feel-good brain chemicals take a nosedive, leaving you feeling sluggish, lethargic and a bit glum,” said Kaff.

“Some light exercise is a good antidote because it releases endorphins to psychologically counteract that lower feeling. Furthermore, exercise will get the heart rate up and improve circulation, which helps to deliver oxygen and nutrients to the skin — keeping it healthy, glowy and kickstarting collagen production.”