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GP Reveals The Health Changes You'll See During Dry January

GP Reveals The Health Changes You'll See During Dry January

If you're ditching alcohol this January, you should be able to notice changes within the first week

Rebecca Shepherd

Rebecca Shepherd

Many people will be opting to ditch the booze come tomorrow (1 January) to see whether they can go a full month without a drink. For many it's the detox your body needs after a hectic Christmas - similar to why people go vegetarian or vegan.

As 2020 has been somewhat of a massive s**t show, drinking has been at an all time high, meaning that giving up the bevvies may be more beneficial than ever.

PA

But if you don't know whether to give it a whirl, it's worth noting the differences you should be able to see in your body after just one week of no alcohol.

GP Dr Ross Perry, Medical Director of cosmedics.co.uk, told FEMAIL that changes you can expect to see include alternate food choices and appetite, more energy - both physically and, sometimes more importantly, mentally.

Chances are you're not going to want a Maccies followed by a Chinese if you're not hungover. Science.

Then after a month you may find that your sleep is fully regulated, your skin should be clearer and the fat around your liver could be reduced by 15 percent. Well, this just became a whole lot more appealing.

Dr Perry explained: "Binge drinking can have serious health problems. In the long term it can boost the risk for liver disease, high blood pressure, stroke, certain cancers, and heart disease but equally it can cause accidents alongside memory problems, alcohol poisoning and a build-up of alcohol in the blood stream which can affect our vital organs.

"Having the odd alcoholic drink every now and then isn't going to cause much of a problem but when moderation is every day, and at least several glasses, this is when long term it can cause a problem."

PA

Pinpointing the almost immediate impact that Dry January can have, he went on: "After your last drink the liver starts working overtime and the pancreas starts producing extra insulin.

"It's important to drink lots of water over the coming days to keep your skin and body hydrated."

On the flip side however, some people believe that Dry January is actually bad for us and say that taking an 'all or nothing' approach could do more harm than good.

Apparently taking 31 days out of your (normally) boozy calendar means that you could be more likely to give yourself permission to drink as much as you like when February rolls around - and then for the rest of the year...

Men's Health reports that the Royal College of Physicians recommend three alcohol-free days a week instead, while the British Liver Trust suggests at least two consecutive booze-free days a week to maintain a healthy liver.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: News, Interesting