After having too many drinks last night, many will wake up this morning and give up alcohol for the month.
But dry January is becoming a “fad exercise” and is increasingly being used as an excuse to adopt dangerous year-round drinking habits, an expert has warned.
Dr Niall Campbell, a consultant psychiatrist at the Priory and one of the UK’s leading alcohol withdrawal specialists, has issued an urgent warning about Britain’s drinking culture.
‘If you use dry January as an excuse to drink excessively in December and February, and the rest of the year, then you are missing the point. Increasingly, that’s what we’re seeing,” he said.
‘Dry January is a fantastic initiative. It is very popular and the health benefits of completing it are significant.
‘But I worry that it has become a fashionable exercise for many people. “As a society, we need a wake-up call.”
Alcohol is causing a record number of deaths across the UK, according to figures published in December (file image)
Around 15.5 million people in the UK are expected to face dry January this year (file image)
Around 15.5 million people in the UK are expected to take on Dry January this year, the popular annual challenge in which people abstain from alcohol for 31 days.
However, alcohol is causing a record number of deaths across the UK, according to figures published in December, with more than 8,200 deaths in 2023, a 42 per cent increase on 2019.
New figures released by Priory, an independent provider of addiction treatment services, confirm that alcohol remains by far the biggest addiction in Britain.
In 2024, 59 percent of people seeking support through their addiction treatment services were seeking help for alcohol abuse.
Dr Campbell warned that the number of alcohol-related deaths may be even higher than the figures indicate.
“The official death tolls are alarming, but they are just the tip of the iceberg,” he explained.
‘It is clear from my long clinical experience with alcoholics that the number of deaths from alcohol is much higher than the figures indicate.
‘Government statistics only cover a limited number of causes, mainly liver diseases.
January should be a time for everyone to reflect on their drinking habits and learn to enjoy social events or relax at home without alcohol, an expert said (file image)
‘Many more people die as a result of other alcohol-related causes, especially poisonings leading to fatal accidents, withdrawal attacks, heart attacks and strokes, even at a younger age.
“Often autopsies are not performed or alcohol is not detected as a cause of death in these conditions.”
While one in five people now classify themselves as non-drinkers, particularly younger generations, a significant number of those who drink alcohol do so in harmful ways, he added.
He said January should be a time for everyone to reflect on their drinking habits and learn to enjoy social events or relax at home without alcohol.
These lessons should continue for the rest of the year, he added.