The Best — & Worst — Types Of Alcohol For Your Skin

It's two weeks into January, and if you've resolved to go dry — cutting out alcohol — you might be feeling a change of heart heading into the weekend. While it's no beauty elixir, one glass of red wine a day is okay, even healthy, some might say. But when you start your morning with a round of mimosas at brunch, down a vodka shot around midnight, and account for a few beers in between — the repercussions are not so fun. Not only does it mess with your clarity of mind, drinking can seriously fuck up your skin — if you're not careful.

As celebrity aesthetician Angela Caglia tells us, alcohol dehydrates your skin and robs it of its vital nutrients, so excessive alcohol consumption (think: drinking like you're still a college freshman), can contribute to skin's premature aging in the long term, plus bloating, puffiness, enlarged pores, dullness, and rosacea the day after.

The way to avoid all that: Be cognizant of your skin and the way it reacts to certain types of alcohol when walking up to the bartender. Caglia recommends living (or drinking) by the general rule of thumb: The clearer the alcohol, the better it'll be for your skin. Red wine, dark whiskey, a piña colada — these are the things a killer hangover and a puffy face are made of. Straight-up, no frills shots? Surprisingly, not so bad.

Ahead, we're breaking down what the most popular alcohols (beer, champagne, white wine, red wine, vodka, gin, and tequila) do to your skin. Think of it as a guide to keep your next happy hour from fucking you up... your skin, that is.