Does Dry January work? What Matt Field's research found

Does Dry January work? For many people who try it, drinking is lower months later, on average, even when the month didn't go perfectly. But the evidence comes from volunteers, no trial has compared a dry month with carrying on as usual, and a month off resets nothing. Its value lies in what you learn about your drinking and in the plan you make for the first evening back.

Field has spent most of his career studying alcohol, including evaluations of Dry January (The Alcohol 'Problem' Podcast, 00:06; times are from the show's transcript). He is also a participant. "I don't always stick to the guidelines," he told the host, Dr James Morris, in December 2022. He was planning another dry January for 2023 and reckoned he had done it "five or six times" (24:29).

What struck him was how little he missed in some places. Watching TV, playing a video game, doing a jigsaw: "you really notice how you don't miss" drinking in certain ways (24:48). Even at the pub or over dinner, "if you take alcohol out of those situations, they're still fun" (25:33). Not everywhere, he concedes: "there are certainly some situations where drinking alcohol is pleasurable and fun" (26:10).

Dry January began in the UK in 2013, run by the charity Alcohol Change UK, and 175,000 people signed up officially in 2023 (de Visser, The Conversation). There are versions in Belgium and in Australia (in July), and Sober October in the autumn (11:43). A note on interests: Richard de Visser, who led most of the UK studies below, has had research funding from Alcohol Change UK and from bodies funded by the alcohol industry, among others, and Alcohol Change UK co-funds a PhD studentship in Field's group (Butters et al., 2023).

Before you start: who shouldn't just stop

Field points out that Alcohol Change UK emphasizes "that it's not for dependent drinkers", because alcohol withdrawal "can be very serious" (20:03). If you've tried to cut down before and found it very difficult, "it's better to seek some help" (21:16).

If your body may have got used to alcohol, stopping or cutting down quickly can make you unwell, sometimes seriously. Talk to a doctor before you change how much you drink. A doctor can help you cut down or stop safely, usually without a hospital stay.

Know the warning signs before you begin. If, after stopping or cutting down, you get shaky, sweaty, sick or very anxious in the hours after your last drink, talk to a doctor before going further. If you, or someone with you, notice a fit, confusion (not knowing where you are or what day it is), or seeing or hearing things that aren't there, get medical help straight away. Don't wait.

What happened after the month?

Six months later

People who sign up "tended to be heavier drinkers" than drinkers in general, Field says (09:05), and more concerned about their drinking (de Visser & Piper, 2020). The first large follow-up surveyed people at sign-up, at the end of the month and six months later. Of 3,791 who started, 857 British adults answered all three, and among them, drinking days per week, drinks on a drinking day and how often people got drunk had all fallen by six months (de Visser et al., 2016). That held "regardless of success", though the drop was larger among people who completed the month. There was no comparison group.

A 2020 study, run with Alcohol Change UK, compared 1,192 participants with 1,549 drinkers who didn't try. People who completed the month showed "marked" improvements, including lower drinking scores, still there at six months. Drinkers who didn't try showed "very little change", and people who tried but didn't finish showed "more modest changes" (de Visser & Piper). Only 37% of the Dry January sample answered the last survey.

In France, 1,886 adults who did Dry January 2024 answered a short drinking questionnaire before it and later. Their scores dropped by three months, crept up a little by nine, and stayed below where they started (Rolland et al., 2026). Several authors work for organizations that promote the campaign in France. Among US adults aged 18 to 29 who had done a challenge like Dry January, half said they drank less afterwards (Siconolfi et al., 2024).

What the studies can't show

A 2025 review of 16 studies of Dry January found that they "tended to be uncontrolled", rarely followed people beyond six months and mostly studied volunteers (Strowger et al., 2025). People often start at a high point, after December, so part of the later drop could have happened anyway (Butters et al.).

At the level of a whole country, the picture is flatter. As Dry January grew in England between 2015 and 2018, there was no large matching fall in how much or how often adults drank, though more at-risk drinkers said they were trying to cut down in January than in other months (Case et al., 2021). The authors suggest "motivation to cut down being insufficient to cause measurable changes in consumption". Wanting to drink less in January is common; turning it into less takes a plan.

Does a dry month reset your body?

In that study, 94 healthy London volunteers who drank well above the UK guidelines chose a month off, and 47 chose to carry on. After the month, several measures, including blood pressure and weight, were lower in the group that stopped (Mehta et al., 2018). The groups weren't randomized. The authors warned against the idea "that a 'detox' period is all that is required to 'refresh' the liver", which they called "clearly untrue, since the durability of the observed biological effects remains to be established". In a Dutch study, changes in the body after a month off were "not maintained following the resumption of drinking" (Butters et al.).

Field agrees: if people go back to their previous level, "then those benefits quickly disappear" (04:58). And "if you drink heavily for 11 months and abstain for one, there's no evidence that that will improve your health" (32:34).

What participants report is a different matter. Of 4,232 adults surveyed at the end of Dry January 2016, 63% said they had saved money, 56% that they had slept better and 52% that they had more energy (de Visser & Nicholls, 2020). These are self-reports from volunteers, with no comparison group. If sleep is your question, our guide to alcohol and sleep covers what the sleep studies found.

How to get through the month

1. Make it one decision, not thirty

Field's case for a whole month is that it ends the bargaining. A rule like "not with meals" or "not in front of the TV" leaves room for "persuading yourself that I'll just have one", and he gives the example of telling yourself you meant bars, not "a nice real ale pub" (28:17). A month off "could be non negotiable" (27:40). In the French study of 2,123 adults, 62% of those who set out to drink nothing finished the month without alcohol, and 33% of those who set out only to cut down did (Lespine et al., 2026). The zero group may simply have been readier.

2. Sign up for the support

In the 2020 UK study, about 7 in 10 people who registered for Dry January finished the month, against just over a third of those who tried without signing up (de Visser & Piper). Registered people may also have been keener. Field thinks the support that comes with signing up, such as tracking your days and daily emails, may be part of why people drink less later (14:19).

3. Plan the occasions you can see coming

De Visser's tips: don't keep alcohol at home, decide what you'll order instead before you reach the pub, plan a polite way to say no, and where pressure will be hard, meet "in a café rather than a pub or bar, or meet on Saturday morning rather than Saturday night" (The Conversation). Our guides to sober curious and non-alcoholic beer cover nights out and swaps.

4. When an urge comes, ask what you want

The therapist Rachel Kazez suggests asking, when a craving arrives: "what do I truly want right now? Oftentimes, it's not literally alcohol that you want" (NPR Life Kit, 13:28). Our guide to alcohol cravings explains why an urge tends to rise and then pass.

5. If you slip, keep going

A drink on day 12 doesn't cancel the month. In the 2016 study, people who didn't complete it were still drinking less six months later, and Field reads that as a sign that taking part matters "whether or not you actually achieve abstinence" (13:15). Mark the day, notice what got in the way, and carry on. Changing your drinking can stir up low mood or worry for a while. If it feels like too much, see your doctor.

Plan the first evening back

The end of the month is where it goes wrong for some. In the 2016 study, 11% were getting drunk more often six months later, more so among people who hadn't finished; Field's estimate from memory is "maybe 10 15%" (07:59). In France, scores crept back up between three and nine months, and the authors suggest people drift back to old habits "once external structures and motivations linked to the campaign dissipate" (Rolland et al.). Field warns against using a dry month to excuse heavy drinking the rest of the year (32:34).

There's also a practical reason. After a period without alcohol, especially if you drank heavily and regularly before, the same amount affects you much more than it did, according to UK clinical guidelines. Don't go back to your old amount.

What's next can be a lower usual week, more alcohol-free days, or no drinking at all. Our guides to how to drink less, moderate drinking and drinking every night help with the choice.

Use the month to learn

Field's dry months showed him which evenings needed no drink, the film, the jigsaw, the meal out, and which he still enjoyed with one. That knowledge outlasts the month, and the studies suggest the plan for afterwards matters more than a perfect record. His closing advice: "do it for the right reasons" (32:34).

To build that plan around your own evenings, try the 1h Protocol to Reduce Your Drinking. Its free first chapter counts last week in your own country's drinks, runs a short check of how your body reacts when you drink less, finds your pattern and gives you one thing to do next time. The full program is practical education and takes about an hour. You choose your goal: drink less, take a break or stop. With a break, you set its length, and your calendar file marks your first evening back. If your answers suggest your body may have got used to alcohol, the plan says so and starts with a doctor. You leave with your goal in your country's drinks, two habits at your own times, a first-drink line and a sheet for fourteen days, with reviews on days 7 and 14. Four one-tap check-ins by email follow on days 1, 7, 14 and 30. Start free

Frequently asked questions

Does Dry January actually work?

For many people, drinking is lower six months later, on average, including among people who slipped (de Visser et al., 2016). But the studies followed volunteers, nobody has randomly assigned people to a dry month, and in England the campaign's growth wasn't matched by a large fall in drinking (Case et al., 2021).

What happens when you take a break from alcohol?

In one UK survey, 63% of participants said they saved money, 56% slept better and 52% had more energy, all self-reported (de Visser & Nicholls, 2020). Changes measured in the body faded once people drank again, so a month resets nothing (Butters et al., 2023). If your body may have got used to alcohol, talk to a doctor before you stop.

What if I slip during Dry January?

Keep going. People who didn't manage every day were still drinking less months later, though less so than those who did (de Visser et al., 2016). Mark the drink, notice what led to it, and plan for that moment.

How long should a break from alcohol be?

No study has settled it. Most research is on one month, Field sees no evidence that three months is needed before drinking in a controlled way (19:19), and shorter breaks, such as a week, haven't been tested yet (Butters et al., 2023). Choose a length you will finish, and plan what comes after it.

What should I do when the month ends?

Plan your first evening back before it arrives: the date, a number below your old amount, the occasions that stay alcohol-free, and a review two weeks later. After a break, especially after heavy, regular drinking, the same amount affects you more, so don't go back to your old amount (UK clinical guidelines). If a plan isn't enough, talk to a doctor or a local alcohol service.

Sources

This article draws on Matt Field's interview on The Alcohol 'Problem' Podcast, Richard de Visser's article in The Conversation, a therapist's advice on NPR's Life Kit, UK clinical guidelines, and the studies listed below.

• Dry January & temporary abstinence: is it worth it? With Prof. Matt Field (podcast episode, The Alcohol 'Problem' Podcast, 2022)
• Richard de Visser, Better sleep, more energy and feeling in control: the reported benefits of Dry January (expert article, The Conversation, 2025)
• de Visser, Robinson & Bond, Voluntary temporary abstinence from alcohol during "Dry January" and subsequent alcohol use (prospective study, 857 British adults, no comparison group, 2016)
• de Visser & Nicholls, Temporary abstinence during Dry January: predictors of success; impact on well-being and self-efficacy (prospective study, 4,232 registrants, 2020)
• de Visser & Piper, Short- and longer-term benefits of temporary alcohol abstinence during Dry January are not also observed among adult drinkers in the general population (prospective study with a comparison group, 2,741 adults, 2020; corrigendum 2022)
• Case et al, Has the increased participation in the national campaign Dry January been associated with cutting down alcohol consumption in England? (national survey analysis, about 37,000 adults, 2021)
• Mehta et al, Short-term abstinence from alcohol and changes in cardiovascular risk factors, liver function tests and cancer-related growth factors (non-randomized study, 141 volunteers, 2018)
• Strowger et al, A scoping review of Dry January: evidence and future directions (scoping review, 16 studies, 2025)
• Butters et al, Temporary abstinence challenges: what do we need to know? (commentary, 2023)
• Lespine et al, Determinants of successful completion and short-term benefits of Dry January in France (prospective study, 2,123 French adults, 2026)
• Rolland et al, Change in alcohol consumption among French adults participating in Dry January: a 9-month prospective cohort study (prospective study, 1,886 French adults, 2026)
• Siconolfi et al, Sober curiosity and participation in temporary alcohol abstinence challenges in a cohort of US emerging adults (cohort survey, 1,659 adults aged 18 to 29, 2024)
• 6 strategies to help you take a break from drinking alcohol (podcast episode, NPR Life Kit, 2020)
• Department of Health and Social Care, Clinical guidelines for alcohol treatment: 8. Harm reduction (UK clinical guideline chapter, 2025)