Dry Jan? Try dryish Feb, drier March, parched April...
I know I’ve overindulged on the alcohol front this Christmas and New Year, and evidence suggests I’m far from alone in reevaluating my alcohol consumption. As a nation we’re drinking too much. We’re not even talking about the 600,000 people who are classed as alcohol dependent (or alcoholic). The rest of us - those who enjoy a couple of glasses of wine while cooking at the end of the day - have a problem too.
According to recent statistics from alcoholchange.org.uk, a quarter of adults in England and Scotland regularly drink over the Chief Medical Officer’s “low-risk” guidelines. Twenty-seven per cent of drinkers in Great Britain binge drink on their heaviest drinking days (defined as more than eight units for men, and six for women). In 2020, there were 8,974 alcohol-specific deaths, an 18.6% increase in deaths from 2019.
Little surprise, then, that a staggering 15.5 million people in the UK are planning to ditch the booze and take part in Dry January this month. How many of us will stick to it? That's a different matter.
According to 2023 research from Alcohol Change UK (the charity behind Dry January) only 33% of people who try to do the challenge on their own last the whole month, though that does rise significantly - to 67% - when people use the charity’s free tools and resources, like the Try Dry app and daily motivational emails.
Cold turkey is not, however, the only option. As a 2022 editorial in the Lancet put it: "recommendations of stepped or staggered reductions (eg, a few alcohol-free days per week, reducing a unit per week, swapping every other drink for an alcohol-free alternative) could be a more long-lasting solution and appropriate for more people.” Could a slow and steady approach to drying out win the race?
Why is Dry January so challenging?
An independent study found that 70% of those who take part are still drinking less alcohol six months later, so it really does work for many. Moreover, the scientific consensus is now firm. There is no safe level of drinking. To optimise our physical health, we shouldn’t be drinking any alcohol all. In fact, the US surgeon general has just claimed that - as the leading cause of cancer - alcoholic beverages should carry a warning label, much like cigarette packs do.
Rob Burns, an alcohol counsellor who works for the charity, DrinkCoach, believes that for some, a Dry January-style abstinence can be helpful. “Dry January can work as a springboard,” he says – a way to reset your relationship with alcohol year-round. Burns suggests making proper use of the month, making a written record of the changes in your health and mood as the weeks progress – your sleep, your relationships, that time you went for a run and felt better. “By seeing tangible benefits, you could be giving yourself the impetus to carry on further into the year,” he says.
But, as anyone who has made a dramatic New Year’s resolution will attest, good intentions often fall by the wayside, and even if you make it to the end of the month, a Dry January can lead to a drinkier-than-usual February.
A 2021 study found that increased Dry January participation in the UK between 2015 and 2018 did not result in a decrease in overall consumption nationwide. As the Lancet editorial put it: “unexpected negatives of abstinence months for casual drinkers include feeling at greater liberty to drink to excess at other times of the year, with binge drinking having a greater damaging effect."
“The phrase ‘New Year’s resolutions’ has far too much hope, expectation and pressure attached to it,” says psychotherapist and cognitive behavioural therapy practitioner Kamalyn Kaur. “It’s an all-or-nothing mindset. There is too much pressure, no room for flexibility and it just isn’t realistic." This might explain why 92% of people will not be able to achieve their New Year’s resolutions.
“The phrase also gives the impression that the giving-up-drinking plan is only for the new year, and if you can’t do well in January, then you have somehow failed, when in actual fact that is not the case at all.”
Cutting back, not cutting out?
Encouragingly, experts concur that it is possible to minimise risks to your health and still have the odd drink. “While abstinence is clearly preferable for some of us, moderation might be a more realistic (and enjoyable) way forward,” says Kaur. Rob Burns agrees, saying that cutting back can be “beneficial, especially if you reduce in a way that improves your quality of life, with the view that you will continue to stick to it”.
There could even be psychological benefits to letting off steam over a G&T with a friend. A study from the University of Oxford revealed that the socialising that comes with meeting a friend for a drink can be good for us. And let’s not forget that cheering glass of red enjoyed regularly by long-living people in the world’s ‘blue zones’, areas renowned for their populations of healthy super-agers.
Step one: do the maths
Most people are vaguely aware of the NHS recommendations to drink no more than 14 units of alcohol a week, spread across three days or more. Fourteen units equates to around six medium glasses of wine, or six pints of beer.
But even if we kid ourselves we are sticking within this, it’s easier to tip into unsafe territory than you might have thought.
“Wine is a common problem,” says Burns. “What you might consider ‘only a glass’ of wine is actually quite a large glass.” He is right – an average slug for many people comes in at around 175ml, which equals 2.25 units and 158 calories. Add another, and it’s 4.5 units (and 316 calories).
Step two: track your tipples
There are various apps available, including the MyDrinkaware app and the DrinkCoach app. The latter boasts a two-minute test, which is a digital version of the World Health Organization’s Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test and considered the “gold standard” alcohol screening tool. From here, the app scores you as a low-, medium- or high-risk drinker. It also keeps track of how much you’ve drunk, which is broken down into units and calories and how much money you have spent.
Step three: implement micro distractions
“People drink alcohol for many reasons,” says Rob Burns. “It could be habit, boredom or stress relief.” For others, it could be social pressures, or a reflex action on hurling yourself through your door after a particularly stressful week at work.
“If you want to cut down, it’s time to examine and start to change that learned behaviour,” says Burns. So, instead of coming straight home from work, heading into the kitchen and popping that cork, do something else first, just for a few minutes.
“A craving lasts only about 10 to 20 minutes – if you sit it out and distract yourself, it will pass,” says Burns. So if you come in from your commute looking forward to a drink, sip a last glass of iced water first – you’ll might be surprised at how that can dampen a need for alcohol.
Step four: measure it out
Once you’ve started to make the psychological switch necessary for cutting back, it’s time to put the practical measures in place. Start off by buying a drinks measurer. These start from £4.50 on Amazon and are a foolproof way of making sure you stick to the script.
“I often suggest that people switch from wine – which can be hard to quantify – to spirits,” says Burns. “So, for example, change your white wine to a double gin and tonic. In week two, cut back to a single measure, and from week three, to tonic water alone on the nights you don’t want to drink alcohol.”
The extra good news here is that a single gin and slimline tonic comes in at under 100 calories a glass. That way, you get your grown-up ‘hit’ without having to resort to soft drinks or juice, which are often high in sugar.
Step five: try zebra striping
This new trend involves alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. A sparkling water between every glass of wine, say. Once you are in the habit, stretch it out. Two waters for every wine, then three...
Step six: treat yourself
According to Burns, that many people see alcohol as a reward – for a finished work report or the resolution of an awkward family situation. For this reason, we see a drink as something that “de-stresses” us.
“Start to consider if there’s anything else you can use as a reward or a de-stressor,” he says. This could be anything, from doing a gym class to reading a book or even having a bath. Instead of depriving yourself, replace alcohol with something you look forward to. Because really, there's no place for self-punishment in 2025.
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