Do patients with vitiligo really need to quit smoking and drinking alcohol?
Disease description:
I am twenty-five years old and have vitiligo. My friends told me that people with vitiligo should not smoke or drink alcohol. Is it really necessary for vitiligo patients to quit smoking and abstain from alcohol?
Doctor's answer (1)
Dr. Wang Xiaoyan
Vitiligo patients should indeed quit smoking and abstain from alcohol consumption. This is primarily because tobacco and alcohol exert significant stimulatory effects on the human body. For vitiligo patients whose skin structure is already relatively fragile, these stimulants may cause even greater damage. Furthermore, the irritation caused by smoking and alcohol consumption can reduce the skin's immune function, easily triggering vitiligo-related complications or worsening the condition. Harmful substances in tobacco can affect the body's synthesis of fibrin and cell deformation capacity, damage vascular endothelial cells, and trigger a series of physiological functional changes, thereby exacerbating the pathological changes of vitiligo. Excessive alcohol consumption, on the other hand, can lead to the production of toxic substances in the body, causing endocrine abnormalities, microcirculatory disturbances, and other issues that negatively impact the treatment and recovery of vitiligo.
