Cocktails and You

Depending on when you read this, you're either about to enter or have just survived a weekend with two major excuses for drinking built into them. Tomorrow, May 4, is Derby Day, with its Mint Juleps for horseracing fans the world over. The next day is Mexican-themed Cinco de Mayo, with its cold cervezas and tasty margaritas for people of all ancestries.

We hate to say this, but board certified plastic surgeons are human too, and we have nothing against an occasional drink. However, as a blog dedicated to beauty, we do have to warn that too much boozing can definitely make you less attractive, as well as a lot less generally healthy. Sure, everyone looks a little more suave holding a martini glass in their hand...and we all know that booze can, at times, make other people look more attractive in a way that can make even the best plastic surgeons a bit jealous. That doesn't mean the effect works in reverse.

First of all, and most obviously, alcohol is about as fattening as all those sugary sodas you're constantly being warned about -- and we're talking about the less sweet drinks like a gin or vodka martini. When you start adding very sweet liqueurs, fruit juices, syrups, and all the rest you're talking about some extremely fattening beverages. Second of all, if you're drinking a lot, and consistently, alcohol can damage such important bodily organs as your liver, your kidneys, and your skin. Sure, you're liver and kidneys are a bit hard to see -- and not under the purview of even top plastic surgeons -- but trust us when say that damaging them does no favors to your appearance. Still, the drying out of your skin and hair, not to say the bloating that too much boozing can cause, should be enough of a concern to put the breaks on drunkenness for any beauty-conscious woman or man.

All that being said, we really don't want to be killjoys. All we suggest is that you keep in mind the words of legendary food writer M.F.K. Fisher regarding martinis: "One is just right, two is too much, and three is never enough."