Dry January can be amazing for your health, if done the right way

Dry January, aka ditching alcohol in the first month of the new year, is an annual tradition for many people. For some, it’s part of a New Year’s resolution to drink less, while others claim it’s a way to “detox” from excessive drinking over the holidays—but all swear that it’s going to do beneficial things for their health.

We’re not usually fans of fad diets or gimmicky health changes that may not be sustainable for the long haul. That’s because any type of deprivation with an expiration date tends to not have a lot of benefits once it’s over. Even if you reap some benefits in the short term, you might end up overindulging once you reach your goal. But, as far as wellness trends go, dry January seems pretty harmless—in fact, it could actually do really great things for your health—if you approach it the right way.

First, come up with your why

Before you commit to dry January, it’s important to consider why you’re doing it. There’s obviously nothing wrong with abstaining from or limiting your alcohol intake. Excessive drinking and binge drinking can lead to several negative health effects, including high blood pressure and high cholesterol, women’s health expert Jennifer Wider, M.D., says. “Excessive drinking also impairs your sleeping patterns and increases the risk for certain diseases, including breast cancer, heart disease, stroke, and liver problems,” she says.

But taking a one-month hiatus from drinking won’t necessarily turn back the clock—nor will it make it acceptable to drink as much as you want the rest of the year. So it’s important to consider why you’re taking a break from drinking this month.

Next, consider how much you’re actually drinking these days

In most cases, the benefits of Dry January will depend on what your baseline drinking behaviours are, George F. Koob, Ph.D., director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), says. Someone who drinks occasionally probably won’t notice as much of a difference as someone who has four or five drinks in one night—several nights a week. So, for our intents and purposes, let’s assume we’re talking about someone who drinks more than what’s considered “moderate,” which actually depends on who’s defining “moderate.”

The USDA Dietary Guidelines defines moderate drinking as up to one drink per day for women, while the NIAAA defines low-risk drinking as no more than seven drinks per week for women, or no more than three drinks on any single day. So if you’re drinking a lot more than that, keep in mind that this transition may be a bit harder for you than someone else.

You should also be careful—and possibly give your doctor a heads up—before abruptly stopping drinking if you’ve been drinking a lot, as you may experience withdrawal symptoms. “Most people are going to think of it like a hangover but if you have a predisposition to seizures or you’re on seizure medication, abruptly stopping alcohol could trigger a seizure,” says Koob.

So what health benefits can you reasonably expect from dry January?

Your general health may improve

As we mentioned, excessive drinking can lead to serious negative health outcomes, like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and even cancer. There’s also the fact that more and more women are ending up in the emergency room from alcohol-related causes, which means that cutting back on alcohol (or cutting it out completely) can lower your risk of an acute health emergency as well. So, even though abstaining for one month won’t turn back the clock on long-term health issues, it likely couldn’t hurt as far as your health is concerned.

While we don’t know exactly what effect dry January will have on your liver, we do know that alcohol puts metabolic stress on the liver and that about half of all liver disease deaths are from alcoholic liver disease, says Koob. Given the increasing incidence of millennials dying from alcohol-related liver diseases, taking a load off this vital organ certainly isn’t the worst idea. It’s reasonable to assume that abstaining from drinking is generally good for your liver—as long as you don’t use this hiatus as an excuse to drink however much you want the other 11 months of the year.

You could see how your body feels without booze

“The biggest benefit is learning where your body is in relation to alcohol and what you want your relationship with it to be,” says Koob. If, for instance, you’ve been feeling not your best lately and you suspect that your regular (or excessive) drinking habits might be contributing to that, it could be helpful to see how you’re feeling (mentally, physically, socially, etc.) when you don’t have booze for a month.

“For some people, it can be a great way to hit the reset button and get their systems back on track,” New York–based registered dietitian Jessica Cording reveals. “It’s not a bad idea, especially if you are trying to cut down on your drinking.”

You might sleep better and feel more energised

“It may help you feel more clear-headed and experience better sleep along with regular digestion,” Cording says. “This can help you feel more energetic and stay motivated to get in your workouts and stick to overall healthy eating habits.”

And the sheer fact that you’re not going out drinking most nights can lead to sleeping more and skipping fewer workouts. All of that can impact how productive you are, how focused you are at work, and how you feel overall, says Koob.

Your immune system may be in better shape

When it comes to your immune system, the snowball effect of positive health habits may be more influential than just abstaining from alcohol. According to Koob, being intoxicated can acutely suppress immune function, making you more vulnerable to pathogens, while chronic drinking can lead to inflammatory reactions throughout the body. While there isn’t data to suggest that ditching booze can protect you from the flu, it’s reasonable to assume that drinking less, sleeping more, and exercising more can all have a positive influence on your immune system.

You might lose some weight

First, it’s important to note that focusing on weight loss as a goal isn’t necessarily the healthiest choice for everyone, and that before you try to lose weight you should consult a doctor or healthcare professional to figure out if it’s a smart choice for you (and if so, what the healthiest approach might be). Sometimes focusing on calories above all else can be detrimental to your health, particularly if you have a history of disordered eating.

With that being said, if you’re having several drinks a week, one result of dry January could be a decrease in your overall caloric intake, since a standard drink typically has around 150 calories, says Koob. If you’re trying to lose weight or be mindful of how much you’re consuming, cutting alcohol can be one way to approach it without compromising any of the fuel and nutrients your body needs.

“Alcohol contributes calories but doesn’t make us feel more satisfied—it often amps up hunger,” Cording says. Since alcohol has a dehydrating effect, it can also contribute to bloating, she says. And, of course, its ability to impair your judgment may lead you to make food choices that can make you feel not so great.

You might reevaluate your relationship with alcohol

Once Dry January is over, check in with yourself to see how the experiment went and what that might mean for your drinking habits going forward. Do you feel better? Healthier? More productive? Have you saved money? Do you really miss being able to chat with colleagues or a date over a beer? Maybe you’ve found that you’re more energized without all those hangovers, or you’re less anxious after a night of drinking. Or maybe you’ve found that you basically feel the same and just miss the social aspects of drinking with friends. All of these are helpful takeaways to consider after your experiment.

Bottom line: Dry January can have some great health benefits if you go about it the right way

Obviously it doesn’t hurt to participate in Dry January, but you’ll reap the most health benefits if you think of it as a springboard to revisit your overall relationship with alcohol. Oh, and don’t forget that your tolerance to alcohol’s effects will often be lower after a month without drinking, Koob says, so be careful not to overdo it the first time you have a drink again.

Remember, ditching alcohol for a month and then resuming your usual drinking habits isn’t going to do much for your long-term health if you tend to overdo it. “This isn’t a great pattern: binge-abstain, binge-abstain,” Dr. Wider says. “Just like other substances, alcohol in excess has health consequences, regardless of whether you go dry for a month.” That’s why she says it’s better for your overall health to be a moderate drinker in general rather than going from one extreme to the other. Cording agrees. “This is a great time to think about what a realistic amount of alcohol is for your lifestyle,” she says. “Think about how to fit it in in a way that feels balanced.”

“Learn from the experience,” says Koob. “What is your relationship with alcohol, and where do you want to be?”

This article originally appeared on Self.com

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