Whether the goal is to be more active or spend less time online, over 62% of people say they feel pressured to create a New Year’s resolution, according to a survey conducted by Forbes Health. While the most common resolution is improving fitness (48%), a new resolution trend that has grown in popularity is Dry January.
Dry January is a cleanse that consists of not drinking alcohol for the entire month of January. The most common reasons include pursuing a better diet, weight loss and/or improved sleep.
Not drinking for a month can lead to significant improvements in overall health. NDTV states the month-long challenge leads to improved blood pressure, better sleep, clearer skin and happier emotional well-being.
While the benefits are persuasive factors for individuals, the trend itself can be harmful.
For starters, alcoholism is a huge issue in the United States. Last year, the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported that 27.9 million people, ages 12 and older, suffered from Alcohol-Use Disorder (AUD), a disorder in which an individual will consume alcohol to a point of impeding their own life.
Taking this into consideration, quitting cold-turkey those suffering from AUD could be detrimental. The American Addiction Center has found quitting drinking abruptly can lead to nausea, tremors, hallucinations, anxiety and elevated blood pressure.
This trend is not only harmful for those in active addiction, but it also poses a serious threat to those who casually drink. On average, 49.6% of college-aged individuals drink at least once a month, according to a survey conducted by NSDUH. Because alcohol is a big part of the college experience, abruptly quitting can lead to cycles of binge-drinking once the month is over.
This phenomenon, known as the “rebound effect” where individuals drink more because they feel they have survived the month. By binge-drinking, people are reversing the positive effects that were created by not drinking throughout the entirety of January. In fact, they may be causing additional negative effects because they are drinking more to make-up for lost time.
Most importantly, a one-month streak of not drinking doesn’t necessarily equate to learning to drink less or not at all.
The purpose of Dry January is to better oneself. If it is only done for one month, the positive results will quickly fade once an individual engages in drinking again. Therefore, this trend serves no real positive purpose, and one would be better off committing to quitting entirely.
Dry January is no different than any other New Year’s resolution. Unless you are fully committed and want to cut alcohol out of your life completely, then it is pointless to stop for a month.
Rather than quitting for a month, gradually learning to drink less and less over time will have better effects on one’s health in the long-run and is less likely to lead to cycles of increased drinking.
