Have you heard the term sober curious? While society has become much more focused on alcohol (especially post-COVID), many wellness advocates turning to non-alcoholic alternatives. When we go out with friends, the norm is to go out for drinks, or at least drink while out doing other things. Even though we are not alcohol shaming (I mean, a clean margarita is one of our favorite ways to celebrate!), we do think it’s a good time to start exploring healthier options!

Benefits of Cutting Back or Completely Cutting Out Alcohol

In today’s world, people are constantly surrounded by alcohol. Whether it’s after work drinks, a drink (or two or three) with dinner, a drink while watching your favorite TV show, or a nightcap, we find ourselves in positions to drink on a very regular basis. An occasional drink isn’t bad for you, but when you find yourself drinking several times a week, it can affect your health in a lot of ways.

Instead focusing on all the negative ways drinking can affect you, let’s discuss some positive changes that happen when you cut back!

• Improved sleep – this one is huge because quality sleep affects us in so many ways!
• You could lose weight – alcohol has a ton of calories and is also very inflammatory;
• Skin will be more hydrated and you’ll look younger;
• Food cravings could go down;
• Immune system will improve – because alcohol lowers your immune system;
• Digestive issues could resolve or at least get better;
• Overall health will be better and your cancer risk will go down; and
• Many, many more!

What Are Other Options?

There is definitely something exciting about a fancy drink! You can find a bunch of great mocktail ideas here or here. Mocktails are great, but can include a lot of extra sugar. Luckily, there are many that provide health benefits as well! Dr. Axe is a wellness physician with a great post called The Best Mocktails: Alcohol-Free Drinks that Boost Your Health! Another source for superfood mocktails is NutritionStripped. Bonus: each of these pages have a plethora of amazing health information for your wellness journey!

If you’re looking to replace your alcohol with something similar, Lyres and Ritual have zero-proof replacement options available. They carry anything from tequila and rum to Aperol. For a more botanical option, Seedlip has a few interesting mixers that allow you to be creative with your bartending skills.

Adaptogenic drinks are a new craze these days. Adaptogens are a specific class of botanicals, herbs, or mushrooms that are linked to feelings of calm or euphoria. They can sometimes mimic the feeling of drinking alcohol, which is why people have turned to these drinks as a replacement. There are many options out there and the list keeps growing! Some of the more popular brands are Curious Elixers, Kin Euphorics, Moment, and Recess, but there are tons of other options as well!

Raise That (Virgin) Glass

Whether you’re cutting back on drinking or going completely sober, there are so many ways to replace that alcoholic beverage! From mocktails to adaptogens, you can still enjoy a fun drink. So, take advantage of the health benefits of cutting down on alcohol without feeling left out!