From the Guidelines
Heavy drinking can cause facial numbness due to the toxic effects of alcohol on nerve tissue, leading to a condition called alcoholic neuropathy. Excessive alcohol consumption can damage nerves throughout the body, including those in the face, interfering with nerve function and causing symptoms like numbness, tingling, or weakness 1. Facial numbness may also result from vitamin B deficiencies (particularly thiamine) that commonly occur in heavy drinkers due to poor nutrition and alcohol's interference with vitamin absorption.
Some key points to consider:
- Alcohol consumption is a significant risk factor for over 200 diseases and types of injuries, with the largest number of deaths attributable to alcohol consumption being from cardiovascular diseases, followed by injuries, gastrointestinal diseases, and cancers 1.
- The economic costs of harmful alcohol consumption are substantial, with estimated costs of €125 billion in the EU in 2003, exceeding the reported contribution of the alcohol industry to the EU economy 1.
- The pathophysiology of alcohol-related diseases is complex, involving the accumulation of fat in the liver, changes in gut permeability, and activation of the innate immune response, leading to liver cell inflammation, injury, apoptosis, and necrosis 1.
In some cases, alcohol-induced facial numbness might be temporary, occurring during intoxication, but with chronic heavy drinking, the nerve damage can become permanent. Additionally, alcohol can trigger or worsen other neurological conditions like Bell's palsy or trigeminal neuralgia that cause facial numbness. Reducing or eliminating alcohol consumption is essential for individuals experiencing facial numbness related to drinking, and seeking medical attention is crucial as some nerve damage may be reversible with proper treatment and abstinence from alcohol 1.
From the Research
Heavy Drinking and Facial Numbness
- Heavy drinking can lead to various neurological complications, including peripheral neuropathy, which may cause numbness in different parts of the body, including the face 2, 3, 4.
- Alcoholic neuropathy, a condition caused by long-term excessive drinking, can result in damage to nerves, leading to symptoms such as spontaneous burning pain, hyperalgesia, and allodynia 2.
- The exact mechanism behind alcoholic neuropathy is not well understood, but it is believed to involve factors such as nutritional deficiency, oxidative stress, and the direct toxic effect of alcohol on nerves 2, 3.
- Studies have shown that heavy drinking can cause damage to the central and peripheral nervous systems, leading to a range of neurological complications, including encephalopathic states, peripheral neuropathies, and myopathy 3, 4.
- While the evidence does not specifically mention facial numbness as a direct consequence of heavy drinking, it is possible that the neurological damage caused by excessive alcohol consumption could lead to numbness or other sensory abnormalities in the face 5, 6.