Sixty-two percent of adults in the United States say they drink alcohol, according to a July 2023 Gallup survey. This widely outnumbers those who say they completely abstain — which came out to 38% of Americans.
Many month-long challenges have been advertised as a way to persuade people to spend 30 days without alcohol. “Dry January” and “Sober October” are examples of alcohol-free challenges that are popular to pursue.
January and October are by no means the only times when alcohol use can be halted. A 30-day (or more) challenge is a great way to help your overall health and wellness, as there are several benefits that could come out of abstaining from alcohol for a period of time.
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Below are five health-related improvements you may see if you spend 30 days alcohol-free.
- A better night’s sleep
- Improved liver health
- Weight loss
- Improvements to brain function
- Better digestion
Cutting alcohol out of your diet can help contribute to an overall healthy lifestyle. (iStock)
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This loss of quality sleep will give you a groggy feeling the next day.
Once alcohol is removed from your routine, your sleep cycle can start to get back on track, leaving you more alert and refreshed in the morning.
By abstaining from alcohol for 30 days, you could very well see improvements to your sleep. (iStock)
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Steatotic liver is the most common, according to the source, and “is the build-up of fat inside the liver cells.”
Acute hepatitis “is an acute inflammation of the liver cells,” according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, while cirrhosis “is the destruction of normal liver tissue.”
All of these diseases are caused by heavy alcohol consumption. The liver is what breaks down alcohol, so drinking too much can cause severe damage.
Heavy alcohol consumption can be dangerous to the liver. (iStock)
One of the most important steps in treating a liver disease is not drinking alcohol, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. By avoiding alcohol, the liver can be healed of some damage that was caused, depending on the severity of the case, the source notes.
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Alcohol is extremely high in calories (especially super sweet drinks). It lacks nutrients and could cause hormones signaling appetite, hunger and stress to go off in your body, according to Health.com.
While light to moderate drinking is unlikely to cause weight gain, heavy drinking could.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) lays out drinking guidelines, defining heavy drinking as four or more drinks per day, or eight or more per week for females, and five or more drinks per day or 15 or more drinks per week for males.
Since alcohol can cause weight gain, taking it out of your life can have the opposite impact. (iStock)
improve brain function and your overall mood.
“Alcohol makes it harder for the brain areas controlling balance, memory, speech, and judgment to do their jobs, resulting in a higher likelihood of injuries and other negative outcomes,” the NIAAA notes on its website.
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Thera are also long-term affects on the brain from heavy drinking, such as “alterations in neurons.”
Adolescent brains are even more susceptible to long-term damage from heavy alcohol consumption, according to the source.
Consider giving your brain a break to help improve its function.
Alcohol consumption has short and long-term impacts on the brain. (iStock)
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Gastrointestinal irritation caused by consuming alcohol can happen, as the lining of the stomach is a part of the body directly impacted by alcohol, per the source, increasing acid release, which can cause nausea and discomfort in an individual.
Inflammation can also increase with alcohol consumption. That increased inflammation can cause hangover symptoms to be presented, according to the NIAAA.
Therefore, a sober month gives your stomach a break and helps contribute to an overall healthy lifestyle.
