Health Hub

Having a Dry July has great health benefits. We've brought together a collection of articles that could help you with your Dry July.


Tips on cutting down after Dry July

By Dry July Foundation on

Carry on your good work from July through to August and beyond. Here are some practical tips if you want to try to cut down on the amount of alcohol you’re drinking:

  • Before you start drinking, quench your thirst with a non-alcoholic drink
  • Drink slowly – have a drink of water with your alcoholic drink
  • Make every second drink non-alcoholic – this will help space out your drinks.
  • Eat food when you’re drinking, but avoid salty foods – these make you thirstier.
  • Try to dilute your alcoholic drinks – for example, a shandy (beer with lemonade) or a wine spritzer (wine with mineral water).
  • Designate at least two alcohol-free days a week
  • Know your standard drinks – buy an alcohol measure for at home

  • One standard drink equals:
  • 285 ml of beer (one glass of beer)
  • 100 ml of wine (one small glass of wine)
  • 30 ml of spirits (one measure of spirits)


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What Happens To Your Body When You Give Up Alcohol For One Month

By Chloe Mcleod on

We all love to indulge in alcohol every now and then, but a night out with friends brings social pressures in regards to frequent drinking. It can feel impossible to dodge having a drink when you want to be part of the group vibe - and before you know it, you’re waking up with a dry mouth and a nasty hangover again.

Dry July is a great way to reassess your relationship with alcohol consumption and see the health benefits of taking a month off. If you’re signing up to raise money, you’ll also be helping people with cancer. 

Here are a few ways the human body can benefit from abstaining from alcohol for a whole month.

#1 Improvements to mental health

Alcohol may seem like a mood elevator when you’re dancing and having a great time...

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Why are young people drinking less than their parents’ generation did?

By Sarah J MacLean, Amy Pennay, Gabriel Calluzi, John Holmes and Jukka Törrönen on

As we head towards the end of the year, office get-togethers, Christmas lunches and New Year’s parties are upon us. It seems like a prime opportunity for young people to be drinking the night away.

But something unexpected has happened since the start of this century. Young people in Australia, the UK, Nordic countries and North America have, on average, been drinking significantly less alcohol than their parents’ generation did when they were a similar age.

During COVID lockdowns, some surveys indicate this fell even further.

Our research suggests this is unlikely to be due simply to government efforts to cut youth drinking. Wider social, cultural, technological and economic changes seem to be key to these declines.

Researchers...

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Navigating drinking culture in the workplace when you're sober

By ABC Everyday / By Flip Prior on

This year, I've had plenty of time to reflect on what influenced my past drinking habits since quitting on January 1 — and colleagues have emerged as a strong theme.

Look, I'm not about to try to blame Bob in accounts for my own after-work boozing, but given how much time most of us spend at work (and how stressful that environment can be) it's not surprising workmates loom large in shaping drinking behaviour.

Hanging out with colleagues in social situations often brings a not-so-subtle pressure to drink — it's ubiquitous, especially in the media industry, and opting out can feel uncomfortably weird.

And like lots of situations in which drinking is involved, habits can be ingrained after many years until they eventually feel normalised...

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