Earlier this month, we published an article called “Top Reasons for Young Adults to Try Dry January: It’s Not Just About Drinking,” which included an overview of Dry January and the most important reasons to give it a try: in this article, we’ll cover the long-term health benefits of Dry January, which are slightly different – and possibly more profound and powerful – than the initial benefits of reducing or abstaining from drinking alcohol for a month.
In addition, we should note that in the brief time since we published that first article on Dry January, the Surgeon General of the United States issued a special advisory (SGA) called “Alcohol and Cancer Risk,” which “…describes the scientific evidence for the causal link between alcohol and seven different types of cancer.”
This SGA follows a significant number of studies released recently that detail the dangers of alcohol consumption. These studies are impactful and force us to rethink our national relationship with drinking. The new evidence – collected and published here by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) – shows that levels of drinking that we assumed were risk-free – moderate drinking at the rate of 1-2 drinks per day – are not risk-free at all, and can increase risk of chronic disease and premature mortality, a.k.a. early death.
That’s another thing that makes Dry January something to consider. It increases your chances of living longer.
But if you’re a chronic, daily drinker, please consult a doctor before stopping your alcohol intake completely. One thing many people don’t know is that alcohol withdrawal can be dangerous, with severe health risks up to and including death. To learn about the dangers of alcohol withdrawal, please read this article, published by the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome
That’s a serious disclaimer, but it’s necessary. Now we’re ready to move on to material that’s also serious and important, but far more positive and uplifting: the long-term health benefits of Dry January.
Reducing Alcohol Consumption: Long-Term Health Benefits of Dry January
Our first Dry January article focused on the short-term benefits of Dry January, such as:
- Improved sleep
- Healthier skin and hair
- More energy
- Improved concentration
- Improved memory
- Weight loss
We also noted that the benefits of Dry January can last far beyond January, with evidence showing many people who decreased or completely stopped drinking in January maintained those new habits beyond January. Drinking days decreased, overall consumption decreased, times getting drunk decreased – and those decreases lasted for longer than six months.
Now we’ll look at the unexpected benefits of quitting drinking, with a focus on how abstaining from alcohol can improve your long-term health and wellbeing.
Five Long-Term Health Benefits of Dry January
1. Liver Health
Alcohol can damage the liver. It leads to inflammation, build-up of fat, and scarring, called cirrhosis. However, in the absence of alcohol, the liver has a robust capacity to heal itself. Abstaining from alcohol can reverse most of the damage caused by excess or long-term use.
2. Immune System Health
Long-term alcohol use can have a negative effect on the immune system and reduce its ability to protect from disease and illness. The effect of alcohol on the immune system appears most often during the winter cold and flu season, when daily/regular drinkers are at increased risk of infection from bacteria and viruses. Abstaining from alcohol allows the immune system to recovery and restore its strength and effectiveness.
3. Heart and Cardiovascular Health
Chronic long-term alcohol use can increase heart rate and raise blood pressure. It can also cause irregular heartbeat, known as atrial fibrillation, which increases risk of heart attack and stroke. Alcohol can also lead to alcoholic cardiomyopathy, a condition which causes the heart to increase in size but decrease in strength. Abstaining from alcohol and adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle – i.e. good diet and plenty of exercise – helps the heart heal and return to normal functioning.
4. Mental Health/Relationships
It’s common for people with mental health problems – whether diagnosed or undiagnosed – to use alcohol to help manage uncomfortable emotions and patterns of thought. However, any relief is temporary. Over time, underlying issues can become more problematic, and risk of alcohol use disorder increases. Reducing alcohol intake, or stopping altogether, can improve wellbeing, decrease moodiness/irritability, and improve self-esteem, all of which have a posting impact on mental health and interpersonal relationships.
5. Cancer Risk
Health researchers identified the connection between alcohol and cancer decades ago, in the 1980s. However, despite the fact that close to three-quarters of people in the U.S. consume more than 1-2 drinks per week, fewer than half know about the connection between alcohol and cancer. The SGA released in January 2025 indicates that alcohol contributes to almost 100,000 cases of cancer and around 20,000 cancer fatalities every year.
The SGA report also offers conclusive evidence connecting alcohol consumption to at least (7) seven types of cancer, including:
- Oral cancer (mouth)
- Cancer of the pharynx (throat)
- Cancer of the larynx (voice box)
- Cancer of the esophagus (connects throat to stomach)
- Breast cancer
- Liver cancer
- Colon/rectum cancer
We’ll repeat the main point of the SGA and the various articles you may have seen online over the past year: these risks apply to moderate alcohol consumption – 1-2 drinks per day – which experts previously thought was safe and relatively free of risk. Here’s what everyone needs to know about alcohol and cancer risk:
The old guidance was inaccurate: consuming only 2 drinks per day can increase risk of chronic disease and early death.
We think you’re now sufficiently warned about the connection between alcohol and cancer. Now we’ll switch gears bac k to Dry January. If you’re trying Dry January, you’re ahead of the game: you’re already reducing your risk of cancer. Extend this new habit beyond January, and your risk of alcohol-related harm decreases further.
What Participants Say About Dry January
Medical research confirms the benefits we list above. They’re not new: what’s new is our awareness of these benefits, and the fact that risks accrue more quickly and easily than most of us thought. As we mention, that’s all confirmed by rigorous scientific research going back decades.
But what about the other claims about Dry January?
Are those also backed by research?
The answer is yes. A team of researchers from the University of Sussex in the UK tracked close to a thousand Dry January participants from January to August, 2018 – and learned firsthand about the benefits of Dry January. They wanted to know about the long-term health benefits of Dry January, and any other long-term, positive outcomes associated with taking a month away from alcohol.
Here’s what the participants said about their experience:
- 93% felt like they’d achieved something big
- 88% reported saving money
- 82% totally re-evaluated their approach to drinking
- 80% said they got control of their drinking
- 76% learned the real reasons they drink
- 71% learned to enjoy themselves without alcohol
- 70% said they were healthier
- 71% reported better sleep
- 67% had more energy
- 58% lost weight
Here’s how the head of Alcohol Change UK describes the importance of Dry January:
“The brilliant thing about Dry January is that it’s not really about January. Being alcohol-free shows us we don’t need alcohol to have fun. For the rest of the year, we’re better able to make decisions about our drinking, and to avoid slipping into drinking more than we really want to.”
When we read this quote and think about through the lens the first bullet point in the list directly above, what we realize is while Dry January is about drinking, losing weight, saving money, and improving health, it’s also about something else: empowerment. People who try Dry January feel more control over their alcohol intake, and that feeling expands to other areas of their life. In that way, Dry January isn’t really about alcohol, or January. It’s about taking proactive steps to improve life – not only for January or the rest of 2025 – but taking those steps to improve life, for the rest of your life.
