Alcohol—The good, bad, and ugly

Question: Is alcohol bad for your health and beauty?
Mimi: Drinking alcohol is in general not good for your health. It is a diuretic and can cause dehydration, which is unhealthy. Alcohol can cause liver failure. And as far as your beauty goes, a fall-down-drunk is not a beautiful sight.

There are many different kinds of alcohol. Many are beneficial.

The most commonly used alcohol is ethanol. Ethanol has been produced and consumed by humans for millennia, in the form of fermented and distilled alcoholic beverages. Depending upon the amount and the regularity of its consumption, ethanol can cause acute respiratory failure or death. In pregnant women, it causes fetal alcohol syndrome. Because ethanol impairs judgment in humans, it can be a catalyst for reckless or irresponsible behavior.

Ethanol can be used as a solvent in medical drugs, perfumes, and vegetable essences such as vanilla. Ethanol can be used as an antiseptic to disinfect the skin before injections are given, often along with iodine. Ethanol-based soaps are becoming common in restaurants and are convenient because they do not require drying due to the volatility of the compound. Alcohol gels have become common as hand sanitizers.

Ethanol is also used as an industrial solvent, car fuel, and raw material in the chemical industry. (Do you still want to drink it?) In the US and some other countries, because of legal and tax restrictions on alcohol consumption, ethanol destined for other uses often contains additives that make it unpalatable (such as Bitrex) or poisonous (such as methanol). Ethanol in this form is known generally as denatured alcohol; when methanol is used, it may be referred to as methylated spirits or "surgical spirits".

The simplest alcohol is methanol, which was formerly obtained by the distillation of wood and, therefore, is called "wood alcohol". It is used mainly as a solvent, fuel, and raw material. Unlike ethanol, methanol is extremely toxic: One sip (as little as 10 ml) can cause permanent blindness by destruction of the optic nerve and 30 ml (one fluid ounce) is potentially fatal.
Simple alcohols, in particular, ethanol (grain alcohol), isopropyl (rubbing alcohol), and methanol (wood alcohol), are used as anti-microbial agents in medicine, pharmacy, and industry. They are valuable in the cosmetic industry.

With the demise of commercial whaling, cetyl alcohol is no longer primarily produced from whale oil but instead either as an end-product of the petroleum industry, or produced from vegetable oils such as palm oil and coconut oil. Cetyl alcohol is used in the cosmetic industry as a surfactant in shampoos, or as an emollient, emulsifier or thickening agent in the manufacture of skin creams and lotions. It is also employed as a lubricant, .
Glycerin is an alcohol that is valuable in cosmetics as a hydrating agent. Glycerol is used in medical, pharmaceutical, and personal care preparations, mainly as a means of improving smoothness, providing lubrication and as a humectant. It is found in allergen immunotherapies, cough syrups, elixirs and expectorants, toothpaste, mouthwashes, skin care products, shaving cream, hair care products, soaps and water-based personal lubricants. In solid dosage forms like tablets, glycerol is used as a tablet holding agent. For human consumption, glycerol is classified by the U.S. FDA among the sugar alcohols as a caloric macronutrient. Glycerol is a component of glycerin soap, which is made from denatured alcohol, glycerol, sodium castorate (from castor), sodium cocoate, sodium tallowate, sucrose, and water. Sometimes one adds sodium laureth sulfate for foaming or essential oils for fragrance. This kind of soap is used by people with sensitive, easily-irritated skin because it prevents skin dryness with its moisturizing properties. It draws moisture up through skin layers and slows or prevents excessive drying and evaporation. Topical pure or nearly pure glycerol is an effective treatment for psoriasis, burns, bites, cuts, rashes, bedsores, and calluses. It can be used orally to eliminate halitosis, as it is a contact bacterial desiccant. The same property makes it very helpful with periodontal disease; it penetrates biofilm quickly and eliminates bacterial colonies.

So what is the useful application to us?

  • Buy alcohol at 99-cent store.
  • Put a sprayer on an alcohol bottle. Most standard sprayers will fit.
  • If you have really dead, throw-away ugly perfume, pour it into a sprayer and dilute with alcohol. Spray it wherever you want cats to stay away.
  • Use rubbing alcohol to degrease skin before a drying or peeling treatment.
  • Works as (but not as well as purchased) white board cleaner spray.
  • Thin nail polish (do not use polish remover, it makes polish chip more easily.)
  • Refresh dead felt tip markers and highlighters: soak in ½ water and 1/2 alcohol
  • Make it yourself moisturizing hand sanitizer: ½ hand lotion ½ alcohol.
  • Telephone cleaner
  • Computer cleaner (spray on rag, not on the computer). Wipe screen with used clothes dryer sheet to cut static electricity that attracts dust.
  • Polish chrome. Wipe with dry micro fiber cloth.
  • Mix with shampoo to wash super greasy hair. Keep away from the ends. Scrub only the scalp.
  • Ballpoint pen ink remover in laundry. Spray on ink stains before washing. If alcohol doesn’t work, try hair spray.
  • Mix wintergreen alcohol ½ and ½ with water. Spritz on as a refreshing foot spray or on an oily back or neck. Do NOT use for drying out acne. Use H2O2 to kill the bacterium or to fight blackheads.
  • Clean oily ears with Q-tips dipped in alcohol.
  • Ineffective deodorant: Wash with an antibacterial soap (like Dial). Swab your underarms with alcohol. Apply deodorant.
  • If you want to change fragrances in a perfume atomizer, rinse and spray with alcohol to remove the old fragrance.
  • If you have a skin product containing salicylic or alpha hydroxy acid in it, when the bottle seems empty, add a bit of rubbing alcohol and swish it in the bottle. You will get an extra treatment from the empty bottle.
  • Use for spraying tile counter tops, toilet, sink, mirror and chrome in the bathroom or the refrigerator, sink chrome, counter tops and stove in the kitchen. Wipe with a micro fiber cloth. Gives a nice shine and is less expensive than bathroom cleaners or Windex.
  • Use vodka to thin too strong perfume or to rinse the last of a scent from a perfume bottle. Shake before spraying. (don’t use rubbing alcohol, it smells icky). Vodka is less expensive than perfumer’s alcohol. Mix water, vodka, and essential oil to make natural room freshener, linen spray, or after bath spritz. Put in a spray bottle. Shake before using.

Mimi Barre is the owner of International Day Spa, 325 Cajon St., Redlands. Send your skin care questions to her at MimiB@INTLdayspa.com. She and her estheticians are available for personal consultations. (909) 793-9080. Past columns of Ask Mimi are on the web at www.INTERNATIONALdayspa.com.