What happens to your body when you stop drinking

Most people expect hangovers to improve when they take a break from alcohol. What often comes as a surprise is just how many other parts of your body start to recover too, and how quickly that can happen.

From the first day without alcohol right through to years down the line, your body is behind the scenes, getting on with repairing, rebalancing and protecting you.

If you are currently participating in Dry January or considering taking a break, this is a rough guide to what you might notice along the way.

The first 24 hours

Alcohol takes roughly a day to leave your system. As it wears off, your body starts to undo some of the immediate disruption alcohol causes.

Alcohol acts as a diuretic, so you wee more and lose more fluid. That is part of why you wake up with a dry mouth, headache and feeling “foggy”. Once you stop drinking and start rehydrating, your body can absorb water quickly and begin to restore normal fluid balance. That helps digestion, brain function and energy levels.

Alcohol also interferes with how your liver handles blood sugar. When there is no alcohol coming in, your liver can get back to its usual job, and blood sugar starts to settle.

If you have been drinking every day, the first day or so can feel uncomfortable. You might notice poor sleep or feeling on edge. These symptoms usually ease within about a week as your body adjusts to the change.

If you drink heavily or think you might be dependent, stopping suddenly can be risky. If you have a history of withdrawal, seizures or very high levels of drinking, it is important to speak to your GP or another medical professional before you quit.

After about a week

Alcohol can make you feel drowsy at first, but it disrupts the deeper stages of sleep. After several nights without it, many people say they are waking up more refreshed and have more consistent energy in the mornings.

Your liver, which has to process every drink you have, also begins to catch a break. The liver filters your blood, processes nutrients and makes bile to help with digestion. It is a tough organ and can repair itself quickly when damage is still mild. Even within a week, fat in the liver can begin to reduce, and very early scarring can start to heal.

The brain benefits too. Even light or moderate drinking can dull concentration and slow thinking. Taking alcohol away lets your brain work more efficiently again, sometimes within days for lighter drinkers and within a few weeks for those who were drinking more heavily.

Around the one-month mark

Alcohol and mood are closely linked. While it can feel like a way to unwind in the moment, over time, it makes anxiety harder to manage and can deepen low moods.

After a few weeks off, many people notice they feel steadier, less anxious and more optimistic. Even very heavy drinkers often report an improvement in mood after one to two months without alcohol.

As sleep improves and your mood lifts, your overall sense of well-being usually follows. You may find you have more energy, more focus and more bandwidth to look after yourself.

Physically, a lot can shift in a month:

• Weight and appetite Alcohol is high in calories and encourages us to snack or opt for less healthy food. Without it, many people lose some weight and body fat, especially if they are also changing what they eat.
  

• Skin and appearance Alcohol dehydrates the skin and drives inflammation, which can leave you looking tired or older than you feel. With regular alcohol free days, skin often looks brighter, less puffy and more even.
  

• Gut and digestion Alcohol irritates the lining of the stomach and gut. This can cause bloating, indigestion, heartburn and diarrhoea. A month off gives the digestive system a chance to calm down, and many of these symptoms ease within four weeks.
  

• Blood sugar, blood pressure and cancer risk After a month without alcohol, insulin resistance (which pushes blood sugar higher) can improve by about 25 per cent. Blood pressure can fall by around 6 per cent. Certain growth factors linked with cancer also drop, which begins to reduce your long-term risk.
  

Emotionally, a month is a big milestone. Many people feel proud of themselves and more confident about changing their drinking long term once they have proved to themselves they can do four weeks.

Six months in

The liver continues to heal over the first few months. For people who were drinking at moderate levels, liver damage can sometimes be fully reversible within six months of not drinking.

By this point, your immune system may also be stronger. Alcohol lowers your defences against infections, so people who cut down or stop often notice they pick up fewer bugs and recover more quickly when they do get ill. Overall fitness and stamina may be better, too, especially if you are moving more now that you are not losing evenings and weekends to hangovers.

A year and beyond

Alcohol plays a role in many long-term health problems. These include high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, several cancers and a range of mental health conditions. Drinking less or stopping altogether reduces your risk over time.

Alcohol raises blood pressure, and high blood pressure is one of the biggest global risk factors for early death. Even a small increase in blood pressure above the normal range can push up the chances of stroke and heart disease. Cutting back to fewer than two drinks a day can significantly lower blood pressure and therefore reduce the risk of stroke, heart disease, kidney problems, eye damage and even erectile dysfunction.

Cancer risk also changes. One large study that followed more than four million adults for three to seven years found that:

• People who stopped drinking altogether saw their risk of alcohol related cancers fall by about 4 per cent, even if they had been light drinkers

• Those who moved from heavy to more moderate drinking cut their risk of alcohol related cancers by around 9 per cent
  

Making a change that works for you

You do not have to be perfect for your body to notice a difference. Any step towards drinking less can bring gains, and you do not have to wait months to feel them. Better sleep, clearer thinking, steadier mood and more energy can show up surprisingly quickly.

The key is to find an approach that feels realistic for your life. For some people, that means taking a complete break for a while. For others, it is about setting firm limits, building in regular alcohol free days and changing habits around drinking.

However you choose to do it, your body will thank you for every break you give it from alcohol. But if you are finding you struggle to limit your alcohol, your best bet is to quit completely.