If Alcohol is a Diuretic Why Does it Make You Bloated and Puffy?

[deevee]

Why is it that the day after a few too many, despite being dry as the Sahara I look puffy and not wizened?

[Scupper]

This is a WAG, but I know a number of people who are mildly allergic to alcohol and get a sort of rash on their faces when they drink. Could the puffiness be a similar symptom?

[Mahaloth]

Originally Posted by Scupper

This is a WAG, but I know a number of people who are mildly allergic to alcohol and get a sort of rash on their faces when they drink. Could the puffiness be a similar symptom?

Are most of these friends Chinese or Korean? Many Chinese and Korean people have the mild allergy that causes the redness of face.

Naturally, they are pretty drunk by the time it happens and don't really care.

[GilaB]

Originally Posted by Mahaloth

Are most of these friends Chinese or Korean? Many Chinese and Korean people have the mild allergy that causes the redness of face.

Naturally, they are pretty drunk by the time it happens and don't really care.

It's not really an allergy, which is when the immune system goes to DEFCON-2 over something innocuous. Many East Asian people lack a liver enzyme that helps break down alcohol into nontoxic byproducts, and thus don't react well to drinking it.

[scm1001]

It maybe a matter of timescales. Drink 2 litres of beer - it is mainly water and so will start off making you puffy. It will take 2 hours or more for your kidneys to get the excess water out of your bloodstream,, and depuffify you.

It is also a dilatant, so increasing the blood flow to your extremities, making you puffy and red for this reason as well.