Q Are there foods that are particularly bad for my skin? I am an office worker in Dong-incheon and go to frequent company dinners.
A Alcohol dilates skin blood vessels causing redness and puffiness, and disrupts sleep quality, interfering with skin regeneration. Spicy, salty foods and excessive processed food consumption are major triggers that worsen skin inflammation. When dining out frequently, eating well before drinking and drinking plenty of water afterward helps protect the skin.
Detailed Answer
Alcohol dehydrates skin through its diuretic effect and generates free radicals during acetaldehyde metabolism, causing oxidative skin damage. Excessive sodium creates cellular fluid imbalance leading to skin puffiness and dullness. Processed foods high in trans fats and refined sugars increase pro-inflammatory mediators such as interleukin-1 and TNF-α.
Korean Medicine Clinic Perspective
In Korean medicine, alcohol is a representative food that creates Dampness-Heat (濕熱). Frequent drinking damages the Spleen and Stomach (脾胃) and accumulates Dampness-Phlegm (濕痰), causing acne, redness, and itching on the skin. Herbal medicines with heat-clearing, dampness-draining (淸熱利濕) action—such as Scutellaria (黃芩), Kudzu root (葛根), and Artemisia (茵蔯蒿)—are used for post-drinking skin recovery.
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