How quitting alcohol benefits your body after a day, a month and a year

Challenges to your health, ceasing to drink alcoholic beverages for a month.

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In the UK, the idea of not drinking for a month has become associated with two different causes. Alcohol Support UK previously known as Alcohol Concern started promoting the concept of no alcohol in January 2013, and currently encourages people to get involved by using its specialised mobile app.

Macmillan Cancer Support is encouraging people to participate in Sober October, encouraging them to find sponsors who will donate to cancer research if they give up alcohol for the month, also mentioning the physical health benefits that can be achieved by doing so.

The concept of abstaining from drinking for a month isn't new - there are comparable initiatives worldwide, such as Australia's "Ocsober" initiative, or Dry January which exists in many other countries' global news reports.

Researchers have taken the opportunity to investigate how such a drastic shift in lifestyle impacts the body, initially on a short-term basis and also looking at the longer-term effects.

First days

According to Joe Marley of Alcohol Change UK, one of the most notable advantages of abstaining from alcohol for a month is the notable decrease in hangover symptoms for some individuals. People may also experience alterations in their sleep patterns, specifically noticing that alcohol can both enable faster falling asleep but disrupt sleep quality later on in the night.

Remove the addiction and the two effects related to it instantly cease. "There are some immediate effects and benefits of not drinking, as well as the longer-term consequences," said Mr Marley.

After two weeks

Some individuals participating in a dry-month challenge have noticed improvements in their ability to focus, notes Dr Gautam Mehta, a liver specialist at University College London. When comparing 94 teetotallers to a group of 47 people who continued drinking, he found, “People reported that they began to feel the benefits around two or three weeks in, although they had noticed little difference beforehand.”

After one month

At the end of the four weeks, many people noticed a relatively small decrease in body weight, averaging around 1.5 per cent, plus an improvement in how their bodies responded to the blood sugar-regulating hormone insulin.

The most obvious effect observed was a significant drop in blood pressure, with systolic readings decreasing, on average, by 6.6 per cent, roughly as beneficial as the results usually seen in patients using blood pressure medication, noted Dr Mehta. "The impact was enormous," he stated.

This decline in blood pressure wasn't solely due to the weight loss of individuals, as almost everyone noticed a drop in blood pressure worldwide, regardless of any weight loss.

Longer term

Some people might wonder if it's really worth achieving certain short-term health benefits if they're only temporary. However, research suggests that participating in a one-month programme to reduce drinking could lead to a significant reduction in consumption. A survey conducted by Alcohol Change UK found that 70 per cent of individuals who took part in Dry January and used their mobile app continued to cut down on their drinking six months later.

Unfortunately, owing to the fact that this study wasn't a randomised trial, which is the most reliable type of medical evidence, we can't be certain that taking part in Dry January led to a reduction in drinking levels or if people who embarked on it were already planning to cut back.

Even Dr Mehta believes these campaigns aren't a straightforward blessing for everyone. "It doesn't bring your body back to scratch and then give you entirely free rein to return to your usual drinking habits in February, he said. "The campaigns promoting a month off from drinking have the potential to cause confusion, because there's no actual detox period. However, they may have an impact on helping you reset your relationship with alcohol," he said.

According to Mr Marley, some individuals opt for the challenge because of the notion of a "reset." "Many people choose to abstain from drinking for a period of time to experience a reset and to probe the effects, as well as to raise awareness of the daily and long-term impacts of alcohol on health."

Downsides

Caution is advised for individuals who are heavy drinkers and potentially dependent on alcohol; it's not recommended to stop drinking abruptly as they may suffer physical symptoms such as sweating, tremors, and seizures. In such cases, medical assistance should be sought to safely curtail drinking.

There may be other drawbacks to abstaining from drinking for a month, such as missing out on social gatherings at pubs. However, a study by Dr Mehta discovered that abstaining from alcohol did not impact mood levels. As an alternative, he suggests that individuals could consider ordering non-alcoholic beverages at the pub.

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The effects on the body from a diet consisting only of meat.
A 'carnivore diet', comprising only meat, makes a significant impact on our bodily functions.
"It's not always good news" says Dr Carrie Ruxton, Executive Director of the Norfolk-based health charity, the SUGARwise programme.
**What happens in the short-term:**
When you cut out all non-animal foods, such as fruits and vegetables, your body faces a series of changes, including:
1. **Changes in gut bacteria**: Removing fibre from your diet severely disrupts the balance of bacteria in your gut, which may have an impact on how good or bad your body is at absorbing nutrients.
2. **Electrolyte imbalances**: Human bodies lose vital Electrolytes through sweat and water loss, which can disrupt muscle function and cause muscle cramping, and fatigue.
3. **Water retention**: Getting rid of fibre in your diet causes your body to increase water retention. This may lead to water-weight gain, similar to salt-heavy processed foods, however this is usually due to fluid going into your muscles (something Dr Ruxton describes as 'water-weight retention').
4. **Focus and cognitive function can be affected**: Removing a rich source of fruit's natural vitamins and portion of the protein found in vegetables can lead to reduced cognitive ability.
5. **Long-term consequences begin to emerge**: Eating only meat has significant long-term health implications, including increased risk of heart disease, diabetes, some cancers, and kidney disease.

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It may appease CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, the only organisation to voice disapproval of alcohol abstinence months, which campaigns to protect pubs and promote traditional ales.

We're absolutely behind anyone who wants to monitor or cut back on global picture round-drinking, and we're not aiming to harm any fundraising efforts," said CAMRA chief executive Tom Stainer. "But all too often, these campaigns can be badly handled and knock the trade on the head for pubs and social clubs as well.

These campaigns “are often used as a platform by some individuals to unfairly condemn all alcohol consumption - despite a significant body of evidence showing that the majority of people drink responsibly", said Mr Stainer.

We encourage people to make the most of the growing range of low and non-alcoholic drinks available and enjoy the enjoyable and benefits to their wellbeing that come from visiting pubs, whatever they're consuming.

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