New Year resolution to ditch alcohol in dry January
A woman stretches her hand for a glass of alcohol.
What you need to know:
- Research has found that 29 per cent of British people are drinking more than normal as a result of the pandemic.
- Many are starting earlier in the day, saying they do it “to try and cope.”
A sinister side-effect of the coronavirus pandemic, one of many, has been a significant increase in alcohol consumption, which is threatening people’s mental states as well as their physical health.
However, an increasing number of Britons are planning to fight back the old-fashioned way – by making a 2021 New Year resolution to stop drinking in the first month of the New Year.
Research has found that 29 per cent of British people are drinking more than normal as a result of the pandemic. Many are starting earlier in the day, saying they do it “to try and cope.”
Black and Asian people are more likely to be drinking heavily than whites, young people (18-34) more than older people and those with children more than those without.
At a time when Covid patients have surpassed the 19,000-plus peak of last April, many hospitals are in danger of being overwhelmed in terms of space, beds and staff. Treatments of less urgent conditions, including those stemming from alcoholism, are being side-tracked or delayed. Going “on the wagon,” as we call it, could be part of the solution.
The organisation Alcohol Change UK reported last week that an estimated 6.5 million Britons say they will be going alcohol-free this January, compared to 3.9 million last year, before the virus hit.
In some parts of the country such as the north-east, traditionally a heavy-drinking area, as many as one in four plan to give up their favourite tipple for the first 31 days of 2021.
Health experts say a month off the booze can lower blood pressure, reduce diabetes risk, bring down cholesterol and lessen feelings of loneliness and depression.
Drinkers who gave up during last year’s January reported saving money, sleeping better and losing weight. Said Dr Sarah Louden, “Dry January isn’t about stopping drinking altogether, it’s about re-setting our relationship with alcohol.”
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Pandemic apart, the big news here is that Britain and the European Union reached a new agreement on trade to take effect now that the UK is out of the Union. Metaphorically brandishing the Union Jack, a pro-leave newspaper asked its readers what it means to be British.
This response came from a man in Switzerland: “Being British is about driving a German car to an Irish pub for a Belgian beer, then travelling home, grabbing an Indian curry or a Turkish kebab on the way, there to sit on a Swedish armchair and watch American shows on a Japanese TV set.” Most British thing of all: Being suspicious of foreigners.
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An armed robber who stole thousands of pounds was sent to prison for five years and four months. You might say he was in receipt of justice. Police at Newcastle Crown Court said Michael Wright from South Shields, masked and armed with a machete, stormed into a betting shop with an accomplice and forced an assistant to hand over £3,450.
“Tell anybody and I’ll kill you,” he said.
But when he left, the assistant found a piece of paper he had dropped accidentally. It was a receipt for goods bought at a nearby Poundlands discount store.
The police checked the time those goods were bought, then watched CCTV and identified Wright. Linking him to the robbery was made easier because a quick-thinking passer-by had taken pictures of the raiders and their car as they fled.
When police tracked down Wright, he was behind the wheel of the car on the photograph, a Renault Megane.
The judge awarded the man who took the picture £100 from public funds and praised the police for “a good bit of detective work.”
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Last week’s column kicker suggesting that what employers say about workers in their official evaluations may not be exactly what they mean, seems to have hit the spot, so here are a few more: Quick thinking (Always has an excuse). Identifies management problems (Complains all the time). Keen sense of humour (Tells dirty jokes). Happy to co-operate (Gets everyone else to do his work). Should go far (If only he would).
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I am sitting in a bar staring at my untouched drink when a six-foot biker storms in, grabs my glass and drinks it down.
“So what are you going to do about it?” He demands.
I shake my head and say, “This is the worst day of my life. I get fired from my job, my car is stolen and my wife leaves me, so I decide to end it all.
“I come here, buy a drink, drop a poison capsule into it and sit here watching it dissolve. Then you show up and drink the whole thing. But that’s enough about me, how’s your day going?”
