Dry January Can Improve More Than Just Your Physical Health

Abstaining from alcohol for a month (or longer) can impact your current and future financial health as well.

January 17, 2026 by Value Penguin Leave a Comment

After what is for many of us, an extremely “wet” holiday season when it comes to alcohol, it makes sense that Dry January — a movement whose participants give up booze for the first month of the year — has gained popularity. When it first launched in 2013, formalized by an overseas charity and campaign group called Alcohol Change UK, only a few thousand people participated in Dry January. These days, numbers are in the millions.

That increase lands along with data showing that Gen Z (those born between 1997 and 2012) is drinking far less than other generations did when they were their age, an increasing number of alcohol-free mocktails on bar menus, and the sober-curious trend, which champions a more mindful approach to drinking.

And the good news? Along with saving you money and hangovers, drinking less can have cascading benefits for both your health — and your wallet.

Why Dry January is actually a sound financial decision

Let’s start with the most important part: the health benefits. Research has shown that even one alcoholic drink per week increases the risk of certain cancers, including liver and breast cancer. Thus, cutting out alcohol can work to reduce the risk of those cancers — especially for those who minimize, or even eradicate, their alcohol consumption for life.

But fortunately for those who can’t imagine a life of teetotalism, a review of 16 studies following Dry January participants found “improved biological outcomes” even in those who only abstained for a short or medium-term period of time. Those participants also reported improved well-being, possibly owed to the sleep improvements, mood boost and weight loss that can result from abstaining from alcohol.

Along with bodily benefits, ditching the drink can improve your financial health, too. For starters, you’ll simply be spending less on buying bottles for your home or drinks at the bar. But the implications can run deeper, too.

For instance, the treatment for stage four breast cancer — one of the cancers whose risk alcohol consumption increases — can top $130,000, and can cost thousands even when caught at earlier stages and covered by health insurance. In fact, extreme medical costs have become so common, many hospitals routinely recommend crowdfunding as an option for patients facing five- or even six-figure bills.

Additionally, keeping a healthy body can help you score lower costs on certain types of insurance coverage, such as life insurance — which may be much harder to purchase if you wind up with preexisting conditions related to alcohol consumption. (Although marketplace health insurance plans aren’t allowed to spike your premiums due to pre-existing conditions, the care you might need to receive to manage them could add up your out-of-pocket costs.)

Assessing your relationship to alcohol? Help is available

We live in a culture where alcohol is readily available. We drink to celebrate, to commiserate and simply to gather.

It can be difficult to objectively assess your relationship to alcohol in a world where regular consumption is normalized and sobriety feels like an exception.

Dry January (or even “Damp January,” where you reduce your drinking habits without giving up alcohol entirely) can be a first step toward better understanding alcohol’s role in your life.

If you do feel like your relationship with alcohol is slipping out of your control, help is available. Millions of Americans have alcohol use disorder (AUD), which is a medical condition — not a character flaw. Treatment including therapy, mutual support groups like Alcoholics Anonymous and certain medications can change lives for the better.

You can also reach out to the national helpline offered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSA). No matter what path you’re walking, you don’t have to do it alone.

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This post was previously published on VALUEPENGUIN.COM.

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