Alcohol: Is it Bad for Your Gut?

The general sentiment around alcohol is that a couple of drinks each week is unlikely to do you much harm.  In fact, one or two drinks may even do you some good when you factor in the fun and social interaction that it tends to go hand-in-hand with. But what about alcohol and your gut? If you suffer with digestive issues, should you avoid it altogether?

The trouble with alcohol is it slowly becomes habitual, and the amount you consume may creep up very easily without you really noticing.

The jury’s still out, however, on whether or not moderate drinking may have some benefits long term or not – but, how unhealthy is it to regularly drink alcohol, especially if you have digestive problems?

Here’s how indulging in a quick drink after work ‘to unwind’ might affect you

• You become very tired due to not sleeping well after any amount of alcohol, no matter how small
• You drink less water and other ‘hydrating drinks’ while you’re drinking alcohol
• The wine/beer/G&Ts you’re drinking add to this, causing considerable dehydration
• You likely won’t feel inclined to exercise the following day
• Your blood sugar levels will be all over the place, causing additional food cravings.
  Because of all these things (and more!) your mood takes a nosedive

If you’d like to learn more about eating to soothe your gut, I’d highly recommend downloading my online course The Ultimate Gut Health Programme to help support your digestive system whilst avoiding triggering symptoms.

It’d be impossible to include all you need to know in one blog, but the programme will have all you need to know to ensure you’re soothing your digestive system, whilst eating delicious and filling foods. 

The drinks themselves, the cravings, and the lack of exercise may lead to weight gain, which in turn may lead to some fat build up in the liver. This may exacerbate any damage already being caused directly by alcohol.

The connection between drinking alcohol and your digestive symptoms may not immediately seem obvious, as often the side effects only appear after there has been damage. But the more you drink, the greater the damage will become.

So, how does alcohol actually affect the gut?

1.  Drinking can damage the tissues in your digestive tract, which may affect the way you absorb nutrients.

2. Having one too many can also lead to:

• Gassiness
• Bloating
• A feeling of fullness in your abdomen

4. Pancreas

Alcohol is really bad for your pancreas. It causes the over-activation of pancreatic enzymes which may lead to inflammation, this is known as pancreatitis. This is a long term condition which may have serious consequences.

6. Constipation

Now to the other end of the spectrum: Drinking large amounts of alcohol can slow digestion down causing constipation. Which may in turn cause hemorrhoids.
If you’d like to learn more about constipation, have a look here.

So who does alcohol affect the most?

People with bowel diseases are more prone to experiencing alcohol-induced diarrhoea. Including those suffering from –

• Coeliac disease
• IBS
• Crohn’s/IBD

This shouldn’t really come as too much of a surprise, as if you’re suffering with any of those conditions your gut is likely to be very sensitive, and will react to alcohol more dramatically.

Alcohol and sleep

People with irregular sleeping patterns, surprisingly, seem to be more affected by the adverse affects of alcohol. For example –

• Shift workers
• New parents
• Those who like to party all night …

These groups tend to experience diarrhoea after drinking alcohol more than other people.

Why?

Because it has been shown that a lack of regular sleep makes the digestive tract very sensitive. Simply because your gut needs rest too, and if it’s not getting the rest it needs it’ll start to get cranky.

So if you’re a nurse, or you’ve got small children who wake you at night, and you were wondering why even a small amount of alcohol makes your guts feel a bit iffy – now you know why, it’s not just your imagination!

If you’re worried about your sleeping patterns, you keep waking up at night, or you have difficulty dropping off in the first place, have a look here for all the ways you can help yourself.

These are just a few of the problems which may arise with your gut, and general health, if you drink alcohol. Of course there are many, many other ways alcohol can disrupt your health.