6. Your Stomach Hurts
Alcohol has a vasodilatory effect on the stomach, which means you’re more susceptible to absorb food allergens into your system. So ingredients like gluten and wheat, which are usually found in beer, might leave your abdomen feeling icky and bloated, even if they don’t normally bother you when booze isn’t in the picture.
If your body is having a tough time processing it all, you’ll probably face either a classic stomachache or a feeling of nausea. For some people, simply adjusting how much they drink will keep symptoms like this at bay. Try lowering the number of beers you put on your tab — and maybe switch to gluten-free beverages to avoid the tummy ache altogether.
5. Your Face Turns Red
The pinkish red flush is a dead giveaway that something in your cocktail doesn’t sit so well with you. Exactly what the ingredient is that causes this is different for everyone. Dr. Decker says the protein from grapes in your wine, combined with sulfites and other organic compounds, might be the culprit of this side effect. There’s an allergen named LTP, found in the skin of grapes, that makes red wine very likely to spark such a reaction. White wine is made without the skin, so you might have better luck switching to Chardonnay.
Don’t automatically assume that you’ve got alcohol flush syndrome, though, when you start to blush at the bar. This syndrome, more commonly known as the “Asian glow,” points to an allergy, which is more serious than an intolerance. Red cheeks are just the beginning if you’re a victim of the glow; you’ll likely feel dizzy and break out in hives as well.
4. You Get Itchy Eyes & A Stuffy Nose
There’s a chance that boozing it up could trigger some allergies that aren’t alcohol related — even ones that don’t bother you on a daily basis. A Danish study published in the journal Clinical & Experimental Allergy closely followed the drinking habits of 5,870 young adult women; researchers found that every extra drink the women had a week increased their risk for seasonal allergies by three percent.
A tree nut allergy might be to blame for these symptoms as well. It’s common to find nuts in distillates and alcoholic extracts, and whiskey and bourbon are sometimes fermented in tree barrels, so pay close attention to the labeling.
However, non-alcoholic allergies aren’t the only possible causes. There are two ingredients in alcohol that are known to produce histamines — bacteria and yeast — regardless of what allergies you’ve got. Histamines, compounds that regulate physiological functions, make your blood vessels swell, your nose run, and your eyeballs itch. (Red wine is a particular culprit for producing histamines as well.)
