Cocktail or Mocktail?
There’s a sober-curious movement underway
During January you might have noticed a lot of content about an “alcohol-free” or “sober-curious” movement on various news and social media platforms You or someone you know might have chosen to take a post-holidays hiatus from drinking during “dry January”. Moderate alcohol consumption (defined as up to one drink a day for women and two for men) or not drinking at all has become fashionable. Whatever the reason for this trend, an abundance of scientific literature shows a link between moderate alcohol consumption and fewer deaths from cardiovascular disease. But unfortunately, that’s where the good news about drinking ends.
According to the “Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries and Risk Factors Study 2016,” a meta-analysis of nearly 600 studies published in The Lancet, alcohol consumption is the seventh leading cause of death and disability world-wide. It further concluded that “the level of alcohol consumption that minimized harm across health outcomes was zero standard drinks per week.” Ouch!
I have never been a heavy drinker, but I really enjoy a glass of good wine or a cold, crisp lager. Then, about seven months ago, something strange happened. While at dinner at a Mexican restaurant, I suddenly could not drink the arguably delicious margarita I had ordered. It was like a switch had been flipped, and my body simply said NO!
I firmly believe in listening to your body when it is talking to you, and so I decided to take a break from alcohol. I did not drink at all for a couple months, and was surprised at how easy it was. I found that the only thing I missed about drinking was the flavor of certain alcoholic beverages, but not the buzz that comes with it.
Our society relies heavily on alcohol to enhance our social interactions or to help us deal with stress. Especially during the COVID pandemic, data collected by the NIH shows a significant increase in alcohol sales and consumption.
The alcohol-free trend of recent years has created a higher demand for NA products and has even inspired alcohol-free bars and restaurants, some of which serve very tasty mocktails. If you are in the STL area, check out https://www.sansbarstl.com/ for some fun pop-ups, or visit https://www.acouplecooks.com/mocktail-recipes/ for some delicious mocktail recipes you can try at home. There are now lots of choices, from a variety of NA beers to wines and even alcohol-free liquors, so I decided to do some product research. Results were mixed. While some of the NA beers approach the taste of the real deal, the wines were disappointing.
After those couple of alcohol-free months, I chose to limit myself to one or two alcoholic beverages a week on a night out or dinner with friends and, interestingly, even then I often choose not to drink.
There are definitely some great benefits of reduced or no alcohol consumption:
Improved sleep
More mental clarity
Reduced risk of developing Type II diabetes from high glucose levels
Weight loss (alcohol is very high in calories)
Potential drop in cholesterol
Reduced liver fats
Reduced cancer risk
Improved skin health and appearance
Saving money!!
Now let me just say that this blog post is not intended to make anyone feel guilty or judge people for drinking alcohol. However, I do think that taking a break from drinking to explore our relationship with alcohol and to assess how much we rely on alcohol to self-medicate, manage our stress or make our social interactions more “fun,” is a really good idea. My personal experience has been extremely positive and empowering. And just think about all the shoes you could buy with the money you save!
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7763183/
https://forefrontdermatology.com
https://www.nextavenue.org/alcohol-free-movement/
Centers for Disease Control