5 things that happen to your body after quitting alcohol
Quitting alcohol is a challenging but rewarding journey. Your body undergoes significant transformations as it begins to heal and recover. Here’s a glimpse into five things that happen to your body after quitting alcohol.
1. Improved Mental Health
One of the first noticeable effects of quitting alcohol is mental clarity. Alcohol disrupts balance in the brain, contributing to foggy thinking and sluggish responses. Long-term drinking may lead to alcohol-related brain impairment — a degenerative condition that kills brain cells while impairing memory and reasoning.
Thanks to restored brain function, you’ll notice sharper focus and better memory retention within weeks of abstaining. Because alcohol is a depressant, it exacerbates symptoms of anxiety and depression. It also negatively affects neurotransmitter levels — chemicals that control emotions and behaviour. Sobriety restores this balance, promoting more stable moods and mental well-being.
2. Better Sleep Quality
Some people believe that nightcaps help them sleep faster — that a beer or wine after dinner does no harm to sleep. It might seem so because alcohol is a muscle relaxant. However, drinking too much alcohol before bedtime causes you to wake frequently, disrupting sleep patterns essential for restorative rest.
You might go through withdrawal during the first few days after quitting alcohol, which could make sleep difficult. However, as your body adjusts, you’ll experience fewer disruptions during the night and wake up feeling well-rested, refreshed, and alert.
3. Enhanced Physical Health
Excessive alcohol consumption impacts various organs and tissues in the body. Here’s how putting down the bottle improves your physical health:
- Liver Regeneration: The liver works hard to eliminate alcohol from the body, so you overwork it when you consume too much. Heavy drinking leads to degeneration, resulting in alcohol-related liver diseases, including alcoholic hepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Cutting alcohol regenerates this organ, improving overall function and health.
- Cardiovascular Boost: Long-term alcohol use promotes high blood pressure and damages the heart, making you susceptible to cardiovascular diseases, including heart failure. Quitting alcohol improves circulation, supporting overall heart health.
- Lower Risk of Cancer: Alcohol use makes you highly susceptible to developing various cancers. Studies show that you are less likely to develop cancer cells if you stop drinking.
- Higher Immunity: Regular alcohol intake suppresses the immune system, making you more vulnerable to infections. Immune function strengthens when you stop, boosting the body’s ability to recover and ward off diseases.
-Improved Digestion: Drinking too much, whether occasionally or over time, irritates and inflames the digestive tract. It also disrupts gut microbiota, increasing the risk of gastritis and pancreatitis. Your digestive health improves when you quit drinking, with more regular bowel movements and fewer instances of constipation or diarrhoea.
-Oral Health: The acid in alcohol erodes tooth enamel, increasing sensitivity and the risk of decay. Drinking dark-coloured wines, beers, and certain liquors can stain your teeth — a stain that’s difficult to remove with regular brushing. Quitting alcohol leads to stronger teeth, healthier gums, and a brighter smile. There’s also a 19% lower risk of developing oral cancer after stopping drinking for four years.
4. Weight Management
Reducing or altogether quitting alcoholic drinks contributes to weight management in the following ways:
- Reduced calorie intake: Most alcoholic beverages contain calories that add up quickly with multiple drinks. These empty calories provide little to no nutritional value compared to those from nutrient-dense options like green tea. Reducing or curbing intake cuts back your caloric intake, helping with weight loss.
- Better nutritional choices: Alcohol increases appetite, causing you to eat more than usual. Inebriated people often make poor food choices when drunk — going for salty, fatty, and sugary options. Sobriety encourages healthier dietary decisions.
- Higher fat metabolism: Alcohol slows down metabolism, inhibiting the body’s ability to burn fat effectively. Regulating or stopping intake prevents unnecessary fat storage, promoting weight management.
- Enhanced physical activity: Drinking alcohol reduces your energy and motivation levels, leading to a sedentary lifestyle. Quitting alcohol means you eat better and get more restorative sleep, giving you more energy to engage in physical activity.
Sobriety positively impacts weight management initiatives, improving body composition and helping to prevent obesity-related conditions.
5. Clearer Skin
Alcohol is a diuretic that prompts the body to lose water, dehydrating the skin. The loss of moisture and nutrients leads to dry skin that wrinkles faster and looks dull.
Skin elasticity is restored when you stop drinking. The blood vessels dilate less, regulating circulation and reducing inflammation. Hydration levels are higher, which plumps the skin and improves your complexion.
Reap the Benefits of Giving Alcohol a Break
Quitting alcohol is a transformative journey that impacts both the body and mind. These five things are bound to happen to your body once you put the bottle down. Remember, everyone is different, and the timing of these changes can vary. Embrace the benefits of sobriety and celebrate a healthier you.
Written by Mia Barnes
Mia is a freelance writer and researcher with a passion for women’s health and wellness. Mia is also the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of the healthy living online publication, Body+Mind Magazine
