With 1 in 5 people choosing not to drink alcohol at all and many more wanting to cut down for health reasons, the alcohol-free drinks industry is growing and providing much more choice for consumers.
“Did people really go out for dinner and not drink?” was the question I asked myself when my husband and I started dating.
I was among the 24% of people in the UK drinking over the recommended levels. My husband was not. He might have a weak shandy every now and then, but my 4-5 times a week wine habit was dramatically different.
Alcohol was such a big part of my life. I used to run five wine shops, so it was hard for it not to be. I became passionate about wine. It was here that I developed a love for delicately-balanced flavour, depth and character- all found in this smooth, mysterious, red liquid.
It wasn’t until my 40’s that I started to reflect on my drinking habit. By then, most of my social and relaxation activities involved alcohol. I was getting annoyed at myself for wasting days off feeling lethargic after a few glasses of wine the night before. The only way I could get energised again was by going out for a pub lunch and having a ‘hair of the dog’. There was no denying it, I knew it was time to step up and change my relationship with drinking.
Giving up the booze is not a bad idea, considering in England alone, alcohol is the number one cause of ill health, disability, and death in 15-49-year-olds. Cutting down is not a bad idea either. Even just a few weeks off can improve your liver function and insulin resistance (important to prevent diabetes). You’ll probably find you lose a bit of weight, get more sleep, and feel more focused, not to mention reduce your blood pressure. They’ll be some less-obvious changes to your health too, such as a reduction in cancer-related growth factors.
Despite being a good idea, quitting alcohol is not always an easy decision to make. My younger self, like many others, probably used alcohol as a bit of a crutch to cover up my shyness. The thought of giving up whilst trying to cope with my very stressful life would have been out of the question back then.
Many people have apprehensions about quitting alcohol. How do we learn to be confident without alcohol? How can we regulate our stress levels without leaning on alcohol? How can we summon the willpower not to drink when out for dinner with drinkers? Will going tee-total be boring?
There are just so many physical and emotional benefits to going sober, that these questions seem to become less important once you start noticing your body, energy levels and mindset change for the better. The emotional benefits help you through the initial anxiety. Because alcohol wipes serotonin from the brain, you naturally feel less stressed, depressed, and anxious. After a few weeks, you’ll probably notice these emotional benefits kicking in. Things like more confidence, more motivation and more emotional stability will become normal to you.
Figuring out how to change your drinking habits can be tricky, but there is plenty of support available to you. Many charities focus on helping people reduce their alcohol consumption and offer some great advice online about how to get through the initial change in your lifestyle. Sober October is a scheme run by Macmillan Cancer Support which empowers you to give up alcohol for a month and start to see the benefits for yourself (whilst raising money for people living with cancer). I’ve done it in the past, and over 15,000 people are doing it this year.
Podcast host Joe Rogan famously goes sober for October. Although he may not always be completely tee-total the rest of the year, many celebrities are. Blake Lively, Naomi Campbell, Leona Lewis, Eric Clapton and Robert Downey Jr. are notorious for turning down a glass of bubbly at parties.
Some celebrities are huge advocates for an alcohol-free life, and even offer support to help those that want to give up. Here in the UK, Radio 2 presenter Janey Lee Grace and comedian Russell Brand have spent a lot of time helping this cause. Janey Lee Grace has a podcast called Alcohol Free Life, has written a book called Happy Health Sober and gave a popular Tedx talk about sobriety. Russell Brand has been sober for over 20 years and also has a book, Recovery: Freedom From Our Addictions. He offers worksheets and a recovery course on his website.
When you give up, you’ll probably realise you’re not alone. More and more people are turning to an alcohol-free or low alcohol lifestyle. Since Covid, it seems that people have been taking their physical and mental health much more seriously. I did a lot of reflecting during that time which led to me creating a range of non-alcoholic drinks.
I started Drinks Kitchen to help you reconfigure your lifestyle and become alcohol-free. When I was giving up, there was very little choice. Everything alcohol-free seemed a little dull, and there was virtually nothing alcohol-free when visiting the pub. I knew if I could come up with something just as exciting as alcohol-laden cocktails, shorts and spirits, then I could help more and more people reduce their alcohol intake when they felt that social pull, or needed to relax at the end of a long, hard day. So I got to work, experimenting with all sorts of flavours, botanicals and extracts. I wanted to create a range of drinks that felt like a ‘special treat’.
It’s not all about giving up alcohol for good though, it’s about creating a healthy relationship with alcohol, along with creating a healthy body and mind. Now and then, I have a glass of wine, and I enjoy it, guilt-free. But I also really enjoy waking up early, feeling alive, and being present in my own life. I enjoy feeling good! Knowing there are so many people opting for no, or low alcohol makes me feel like I’m part of something bigger too. I’m proud my business can support people in making healthier changes.
My advice is, if cutting down on alcohol has been on your mind, go for it. You won’t regret it.
Alli Briaris is the founder of Drinks Kitchen, an award-winning, non-alcoholic premium drinks brand based in Somerset, UK. www.drinkskitchen.online
