713: What Alcohol Really Does to Women’s Hormones, Sleep, and Metabolism

Energized with Dr. Mariza

Dr. Mariza Snyder

Alternative Health, Medicine, Health & Fitness

4.8 • 999 Ratings

🗓️ 20 January 2026

⏱️ 25 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Feel like hangovers are hitting harder than ever lately? In this episode, I’m unpacking why alcohol hits differently in perimenopause—and why that glass of wine you used to tolerate now leaves you feeling off for days. Even long after drinking, alcohol is still disrupting your brain chemistry, slowing your metabolism, and amplifying inflammation throughout your body. And as women’s alcohol consumption has quietly increased in recent years, understanding these hidden physiological shifts has never been more important. That’s why I’m breaking down what’s really happening to your body with each sip, especially during midlife hormonal changes. But don’t worry, I share my top tips for you to detox from alcohol successfully, curb cravings, and feel in charge of your body again. Tune in here to change your relationship with alcohol and feel more like yourself! IN THIS EPISODE Why alcohol feels like it hits harder in midlife What a detox from alcohol can look like for you The facts behind alcohol misuse and binge drinking What really happens in a woman’s body when drinking alcohol The symptoms of metabolic dysfunction brought on by drinking My top recommendations for detoxing from alcohol How to curb cravings and make non-alcoholic drinking more fun QUOTES “We've been sold a very expensive lie that alcohol helps us relax. And for years, I would've told you that it did just that, that that glass of red wine was self-care, that drinking was harmless.” “It's not just a hangover anymore. It's not just getting older. Alcohol is impacting your hormones, your brain, your sleep, and your metabolism.” “In order to feed and heal your gut and your liver, we need a much-needed break, and alcohol simply cannot be included.” RESOURCES MENTIONED ⁠Join my 7-Day Hormone & Metabolism Jumpstart https://go.drmariza.com/lp/metabolism-jumpstart/ ⁠Order my new book: The Perimenopause Revolution https://peri-revolution.com/ Check out my Blood Sugar-Friendly Mocktail Recipes HERE! RELATED EPISODES #619: The Impact of Alcohol on Women’s Health, From Hormones to Cancer #548: The Loaded Truth Behind Mom Wine Culture and the False Need to Wine Down with Celeste Yvonne #345: To Drink Or Not To Drink? Why Drinking as We Get Older Is Hard on Our Hormones #712: Why Lifestyle Medicine Is Mitochondrial Medicine (And What That Means for Your Energy, Metabolism & Longevity)

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Alcohol is the only regularly consumed substance proven to increase breast cancer risk,
0:08.9	even just a few drinks a week.
0:11.3	For decades, public health officials have said one to two drinks a day are good for you,
0:15.7	but the narrative on the health risks of moderate drinking has shifted based on new data.
0:21.0	Welcome back to the energized with Dr. Marisa podcast.
0:25.1	I'm your host, Dr. Marisa, and I'm here to help you rock your hormones, optimize your metabolic health,
0:31.1	and feel energized in your body so that you can age powerfully and wake up feeling amazing
0:37.2	in your body for many years to come.
0:39.2	Let's jump on in.
0:41.8	I used to love wine.
0:44.0	The pairings, the ambiance, the ritual, a bold Italian barboresco from the Pimonte region with dinner was one of my absolute favorite pleasures. So much so that we would travel
0:57.0	to Italy almost every year and bring back cases of Barbarasco so that we could have it with dinner
1:03.1	at the comfort of our own home. It wasn't just about the drink. It was about the experience. But somewhere
1:10.2	in my mid-30s, about a decade ago, my body started
1:13.7	sending a different message, a message that I initially did not want to listen to. Even just one
1:20.9	glass or two glasses with dinner, and I would wake up feeling like hot garbage. I would feel foggy, puffy, moody, just off.
1:31.1	And I started to wonder what is going on. But secretly, I knew it was the alcohol.
1:38.2	The truth? We've been sold a very expensive lie, that alcohol helps us relax, and for years I would have told you
1:46.9	that it did just that. That glass of red wine was self-care, that drinking was harmless,
1:54.1	even healthy in moderation. It's great for your heart. But if your body's saying otherwise, especially now that you're in your 40s,
2:03.3	and maybe even back when you were in your 30s, you are not crazy. You're probably in perimenopause.
2:10.3	And alcohol hits different now. If anything, it hits harder. Now, a little bit of a backstory
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Dr. Mariza Snyder, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Dr. Mariza Snyder and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.