Exploring changes in temporary abstinence in increasing and higher risk drinkers in England and Dry January participation in users of the Try Dry app in the UK between 2020 and 2021.

BACKGROUND: We looked at changes in the prevalence of increasing and higher risk drinkers reporting a reduction attempt motivated by temporary abstinence and changes in prevalence of use of the official app accompanying Dry January between 2020 vs 2021, following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. We also explored potential shifts in the sociodemographic composition of both groups. METHODS: We analysed data from: i) 1863 increasing and higher risk drinkers (defined as ≥ 8 on the AUDIT) responding to a nationally representative survey of adults in England in January and February 2020 and 2021, and ii) 104,598 users of the 'Try Dry' app, the official aid to those participating in Dry January 2020 and 2021 in the UK. We used logistic regression to examine shifts in the prevalence of increasing and higher risk drinkers reporting a reduction attempt motivated by temporary abstinence and explored whether there were shifts in the characteristics of this group in terms of AUDIT score, number of last year reduction attempts, smoking status, living alone, living with children, reducing alcohol consumption due to future health motives, age, sex, and occupational social grade between 2020 and 2021. We used t-tests and chi-squared tests to compare the prevalence of users of the 'Try Dry' app in 2020 and 2021 and examine whether the two groups differed in terms of age and sex. RESULTS: The proportion of increasing and higher risk drinkers reporting a reduction attempt motivated by temporary abstinence increased from 4% in 2020 to 8% in 2021 (OR = 2.07, 95% CI = 1.38-3.11, p < .001) with no changes detected in sociodemographic composition. The number of Try Dry app users in 2021 increased by 34.8% relative to 2020. App users in 2021 were two years older on average [p < .001, d = .02], with a 2% increase in the proportion of female app users [p < .001, vs. < .01]. CONCLUSIONS: Higher participation in Dry January 2021 relative to 2020 indicates increased engagement with a period of temporary abstinence following the COVID-19 related lockdowns in England and the UK, which is positive in the wider context of increasing alcohol consumption throughout the pandemic.

Short- and Longer-Term Benefits of Temporary Alcohol Abstinence During 'Dry January' Are Not Also Observed Among Adult Drinkers in the General Population: Prospective Cohort Study.

AIMS: The alcohol abstinence challenge 'Dry January' continues to grow, but there is a lack of knowledge of how Dry January participants compare to the general population. There is also a need to determine whether benefits experienced by Dry January participants are unique to that group or are also observed among other people. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study using online questionnaires in early January, February and August 2019. We compared 1192 Dry January participants and 1549 adult drinkers who did not attempt to abstain from alcohol. Key outcomes were self-rated physical health, psychological well-being (Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale), control over drinking (Drink Refusal Self-Efficacy Scale (DRSE)) and alcohol intake (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) subscale). Baseline differences in demographic and alcohol consumption variables were included as covariates in between-group analyses. RESULTS: Dry January participants had higher SES, poorer well-being, higher AUDIT-C scores and less control over their drinking than the general population. Beneficial changes in health, WEMWBS, DRSE and AUDIT-C observed among people completing Dry January were not observed among other adult drinkers. CONCLUSIONS: Dry January appears to attract people who are heavier drinkers than the general population and who are more concerned about their alcohol intake. Completion of Dry January is associated with short- and longer-term benefits to well-being that are not observed in the general population.