On the dry for January: The health benefits of giving up alcohol for a month

Those considering giving up alcohol for a month can look forward to many benefits, including weight loss, brighter skin and sharper memory. Also, you will likely feel more positive and energetic without its depressant effects

We may like alcohol, but alcohol does not like us.

There's a great TikTok of a guy trying to explain alcohol to a Martian. The bemused Martian learns that humans pay money to pour a toxic liquid into themselves that can disinhibit them to the point of doing stupid things, leave them feeling physically and emotionally terrible the next day, and damage their health in the long term. And that humans do this for fun.

The problem is that as we get older, this fun liquid — from a physiological and psychological perspective — becomes less fun. The morning after can last for three days, but that’s the least of it — alcohol has been classified as a Class 1 carcinogen since 1988 and is particularly linked to cancers of the mouth, oesophagus, breast, stomach, and colon. This doesn’t mean you’ll get cancer if you drink, but it does mean that your risk increases. And we don’t like to think about it because it’s a buzzkill — we may like alcohol, but alcohol does not like us.