Going alcohol-free in January? Many Islanders say there's lots of benefits
'If you do it for a month, maybe you’ll want to do it for a second month'
P.E.I. musician Logan Richard has just hit 100 days alcohol-free and like many other folks, he's planning to stay dry through January.
Dry January and Dry February were introduced about a decade ago and are now simply known as Go Dry. The initiative is becoming a popular way to help people rethink their relationship with alcohol while raising money for cancer research.
"I think it is a great excuse or reason to try it out," Richard said. "I think if you do it for a month, maybe you'll want to do it for a second month… just to take a little look on the other side is a beautiful thing."
Richard went alcohol-free through 2023 and then decided to add alcohol back into his life in 2024, but decided in the fall it wasn't serving him.
Without drinking he sleeps better and has more energy. He said he's better able to show up in relationships, including with a new love interest, he said.
"Dry January, if that's the reason that you put the bottle down for a month, even if you're not a heavy drinker, it's still just good to know that you're able to do it, but also to feel what it's like."
Richard is 25 and said as a musician who plays in bars, drinking is part of the lifestyle. But he said being sober is becoming more popular with young people, and there are more alternative beverages available now.
Non-alcoholic drinks 'trending up'
For the first time, the five Gahan House restaurants in the Maritimes are tapping into the trend and offering Dry January specials, including new beers and wines, and making bespoke alcohol-free cocktails.
The venue in Charlottetown is also bringing in more entertainment on the weekends in January to celebrate.
"We think it's important that everyone can have a night out," said manager Caleb MacKinnon.
It's all about trying to reach your own goals and become more aware of your own relationship with alcohol.— Kara Thompson
"People are really liking the cocktails, or the mocktails. They find it really fun to still be able to come out and have a good time on a Friday night and not feel so limited about their options."
MacKinnon said catering to non-drinkers is not just a nice thing to do — the bar and restaurant business is tough, and there's money to be made.
"Non-alcoholic beverages kind of as a whole… are trending up right now," he said. "From a business standpoint, it makes sense to have some of those options. We just wanted to take it a step further and offer as much as we could."
MacKinnon said the restaurant has been around a long time but wants to adapt "to the changes that are happening both in the market and in people's lives."
Upstreet Brewing in Charlottetown is also offering its non-alcohol craft beer, Libra, for free in-house at its two locations during January.
Special section at liquor stores
The P.E.I. Liquor Control Commission is also seeing and responding to the market changes.
It told CBC News that in the last five years, it's doubled the number of low- and non-alcohol products it offers, from five to 12.
It's also seen sales of those drinks more than double, from about 17,000 litres to 43,000 litres.
The commission told CBC News in a statement it's planning to create a designated section in its store for low-alcohol drinks and will introduce more new products.
Alcohol is a cancer risk
"There's a lot of benefits from reducing your alcohol consumption. Alcohol really interferes with our sleep quality, so it's likely you'll feel much more rested, you'll have more energy, you'll probably save some money, lose some weight. But it also decreases your cancer risk," said Kara Thomspon, an associate professor of psychology at St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, N.S.
Thompson is a member of the Atlantic Alcohol Policy Network and was a scientific expert for the development of Canada's new guidance on alcohol and health. It's time to put cancer warning labels on alcohol, experts say | CBC News
"Coming off the holiday season, a lot of people are ready for a reset in lots of ways, and (Dry January has) really grown in popularity as one of the kinds of resolutions people make in the new year," she said.
Thompson's tips for those who want to go dry:
- Join a support group or create one.
- Find non-alcoholic substitute drinks.
- Don't give up, don't feel guilty if you slip up.
"It's all about trying to reach your own goals and become more aware of your own relationship with alcohol," she said.
Thompson is an advocate for health warning labels on alcohol, as there are on cannabis or tobacco. She said Canadians are gaining more knowledge about the health risks of drinking, but still have a long way to go, adding about half of Canadians know alcohol carries some risk for cancer but are often unaware it relates to breast cancer and colon cancer specifically.
Thompson advises Canadians to use the app KnowAlcohol.
*You type in your alcohol consumption, and it'll tell you what your disease risk is. You can also type in a goal that you want to set in terms of reduction of alcohol use, and it will tell you what you'll gain, and how your risk will be reduced," she said.
No more than 2 drinks per week
P.E.I.'s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Heather Morrison agrees any reduction in alcohol at any time of year has benefits.
"Less is best" is the slogan behind the public awareness campaign mounted by the CPHO after the new national healthy drinking guidelines were announced in 2023.
According to those guidelines, Canadians must have no more than two drinks a week to avoid serious health consequences from alcohol consumption.
"Decreasing alcohol will have both short-term and long-term risk reductions, and have benefits for your health," Morrison said. "The long-term reduction in the number of drinks per week is what really lowers your cancer risk."
She applauds anyone trying Dry January or Dry February and said it's a great time to get educated about the health risks of alcohol.
"This awareness will help us make informed choices about our health and that less is best all year long, and not just in the beginning months," she said.
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With files from Island Morning