Many people all over the world enjoy the benefits of Dry January this year. So are many U.S. Americans. A new study published in the Journal of American Medicine finds that most young U.S. Americans are deciding to liberate themselves from alcohol for the entire year. The study found that 28% of college students between the ages of 18 and 22 reported that they preferred not to consume alcohol. This is in comparison to the 20% reporting they preferred to stay alcohol-free in 2002.
Nearly 30% of people not in college and between the ages of 18 and 22 gave the same answer.
Sebastian Albornoz, a bar manager in Cleveland, Ohio, speaking to Spectrum News 1 said that even bar professionals were now taking part in the month-long celebration.
A lot of people in the industry right now are sober. A lot of different bartenders that have been doing this and creating cocktails for years stopped [consuming alcohol]. Everyone wants to be there and wants to be with their friends. If you are not [consuming alcohol], you still have the possibility to come and have a good time with your friends.”
Sebastian Albornoz, bar manager
These comments also reveal an important facet of alcohol denormalisation in social settings. Non-alcoholic beverages offer people the chance to socialise in settings where usually alcohol used to be predominant without having to consume it.
According to Mr Albornoz, bars experience a significant spike in the popularity of non-alcohol beverages from the end of December throughout January. According to the study findings, this trend will likely continue throughout the year.
Young people view alcohol increasingly negatively
In 2023, Movendi International reported on a study that revealed the true feelings of young U.S. Americans with regards to alcohol. The data was gathered by the Gallup Consumption Habits poll conducted during the summer of 2023. It found that the percentage of young people who were aware that low-dose alcohol was bad for health increased.
It also found the following.
- 39% say consuming alcohol in low dose amounts is bad for one’s health.
- This an increase of 11 percentage points since 2018.
- The shift largely reflects changes among adults aged 18 to 34 years.
- Alcohol is viewed as less harmful than tobacco, but more harmful than marijuana.
At the same time, half of U.S. adults believe that consuming small amounts of alcohol makes no difference concerning health risk, while 10% still claim it was good for one’s health. The last two figures are down five and six points, respectively, compared with five years ago – showing that the myth alcohol was good for human health is getting weaker, even among more senior citizens.
