You’ve probably seen the news that Gen Z is putting older generations to shame in the Sensible Olympics.
In one of the UK’s largest studies of drinking behaviour, it was found that as much as 26% of Gen Z is teetotal, and that Gen Z is the most sober generation of those over 18.
As far as public health is concerned, this is a good thing. There are considerations over whether this abstinence points to Gen Zers socialising with friends less often than older generations, and that carries its own potential health risks on both physical and psychological levels, but let’s put that to one side for now.
Alcohol is not good for us, and it really is as simple as that. Along with long-term complications like liver disease and cirrhosis, heart attacks and strokes, mental health issues, compromised immune systems, and high blood pressure, it also has short-term impacts on our sleep.
Any amount of alcohol in your system will impede REM, which is the sleep stage where you dream. During REM, you process memories, and this includes ingraining new skills or knowledge along with mitigating stress.
Missing out on REM can make you feel groggy, forgetful, and over the long-term there’s a link with dementia.
Alcohol dependency is a common affliction, too. The NHS says that more than 7.5 million people in the UK show signs of the condition.
Booze is also the third-most preventable cause of death in the UK, coming in behind smoking and obesity-related illnesses.
It doesn’t take much for us to cross the safe limits, either. The NHS says that we should drink no more than 14 units per week, with those units spread over at least three days rather than in one or two sessions. That’s the equivalent of six small glasses of wine, or six pints of 4% beer.
With all these risks to our health, along with the cost of living crisis meaning many of us have got less disposable income to splash on a night at the pub, it’s no wonder many people choose to abstain.
Heading over to Reddit, there are plenty of users explaining why they decided to quit the drink, and there’s a common theme among them: it made them happier and healthier.
"Saves a lot of money and feels much healthier/happier," said one Redditor.
"It started giving me mad anxiety the next day," said a second, referencing the famous Beer Fear. "Seemingly out of nowhere - it just started happening one day. One night of fun wasn’t worth three days of anxiety, so I stopped."
Another said similar: "Because of the morning after. When you feel like a hollow and anxiety-ridden puddle of a human."
"I’m sad when I drink," said another.
Others were concerned that they might be predisposed to become dependent on it: "I realised I couldn’t have just one drink and be content. I also realised that I was the most drunk person in social settings where there was alcohol. I also couldn’t handle the increasingly worse hangovers."
Another explained: "I started having very upsetting experiences of 1-2 glasses of wine making me very sick. If it’s not even fun anymore, why do it?
"Also, have you seen how healthy sober people look? It’s amazing."
Intense hangovers were another commonly cited factor. "The lows of hangovers started to outweigh the highs of being drunk,” said another Redditor.
"Anxiety, headache, nausea from just a couple of drinks. I now occasionally have one, but I won’t ever get drunk again and I think it was my body rather than my mind that forced me into it!"
If you’re concerned about alcohol, or want to get some free and impartial advice, call Drinkline on 0300 123 1110. They’re available from 9am to 8pm on weekdays, and from 11am to 4pm on weekends.
Another option, particularly if you’re experiencing difficult thoughts and feelings, is the Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM), which is available on 0800 58 58 58 from 5pm to 12am every day of the year. CALM also has a web chat service if you’d rather speak via instant messaging.
Featured Image Credit: Olga Pankova via Getty Images
Rachael Davis