Dry January - who signs up? - who completes it? - what happens after? Richard de Visser School of Psychology University of Sussex

Effects of short-term abstinence? As well as helping Alcohol Concern to get people to think about alcohol, Dry January allows researchers to address to important questions Some questions about the physiological impact now have answers: = lower liver fat, blood glucose, and blood cholesterol = better sleep quality, concentration, and work performance. However, little is known about how many people complete Dry January characteristics related to success consequences of taking part in Dry January whether people “rebound”, and drink more after taking part

Dry January 2014 surveys All people who registered were invited to take part 3,791 completed baseline questionnaire 1,682 completed immediate follow-up questionnaire in February 857 completed 6-month follow-up questionnaire in August 71% successfully completed 30 people (4%) were still dry after 6 months

Success in Dry Januarymenwomen Greater social DRSE Greater emotional DRSE Greater age Fewer drinking days per week Less frequent drunkenness Lower AUDIT score Fundraising through Dry January Plan to stop drinking Younger at first drink Fewer drinks per drinking day Had a dry month in the past Greater opportunistic DRSE Doing Dry January with someone

Changes in alcohol intake after doing Dry January

Changes in drink refusal self-efficacy (DRSE) after doing Dry January

Benefits 82% felt a sense of achievement [5.8 out of 7] 79% saved money [5.6 out of 7] 62% had better sleep [5.0 out of 7] 62% had more energy [4.9 out of 7] 49% lost weight [4.4 out of 7]