Aarhus challenges its residents to ditch alcohol for the whole of January

The city has your back if you opt for that kind of New Year’s resolution

How are you doing with your New Year’s resolutions? Still keeping in track or have you already raised your hands in despair? Is drinking less part of the new you for 2023?

Well, at least for residents of Aarhus (Denmark) who have decided to cut back on their alcohol consumption after the holidays and start the year with a clean slate, they can count on support from no other than the City itself. For the third year in a row, the authorities have launched their DRY JANUARY campaign challenging locals to turn their backs on booze for the first month of the year.

The idea behind the challenge is more than just symbolic words. The municipal authorities understand that alcohol drinking is also part and parcel of social activities and bonding. It may be hard to not have a drink after work with your colleagues if you’re the only one who’s taken the healthy route because you don’t want to feel excluded.

That’s why the City has partnered up with local restaurants and bars to shine the spotlight on alcohol-free alternatives by offering them prominently on the menus. Zero per cent beer, mocktails, non-alcoholic wines? These products exist and they can help break the habit without feeling socially ostracized.

Health benefits of reducing alcohol consumption

Taking a break from alcohol, many will experience a number of positive benefits such as better sleep, more energy, and fewer calories in addition to improved immune defense and liver function.

“It is time that we break with the idea that alcohol must always be on the table when we meet with friends. Far too many feel that they have to choose an alcohol-free evening, and we have to do something about that. With DRY JANUARY, I believe that many of us will feel the positive benefits of cutting down or completely stopping alcohol for a while and at the same time push our traditions to always choose alcohol," says Christian Budde, health councillor in Aarhus Municipality. 

Aarhusians can register through the municipal Facebook for the DRY JANUARY campaign and thus continuously receive tips and tricks on staying away from booze throughout the month.