‘m a sleep expert, here’s how Dry January will affect your sleep cycle

• 15.5 million Brits are planning on giving up alcohol as part of Dry January¹
• Senior Sleep Expert at MattressNextDay Martin Seeley has revealed the positive ways that abstaining from alcohol in January can affect your sleep quality.

This year, Dry January is shaping up to be the most popular ever, with an estimated 15.5 million Brits taking on the challenge¹. Taking a break from alcohol has numerous health benefits, from reducing stress levels to improving heart health—and one often-overlooked advantage is its potential to enhance sleep quality.

Martin Seeley, Senior Sleep Expert at MattressNextDay, has outlined how Dry January can positively impact your sleep, offering insights into the restorative effects of an alcohol-free month.

1. You’ll experience longer and deeper sleep

A normal sleep cycle consists of four stages: three stages of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and, finally, one stage of REM (rapid eye movement). These cycles repeat in this order each night, and last around 90-120 minutes So, four to five cycles for eight hours sleep.

But, alcohol can suppress REM sleep in the first two cycles. This is because alcohol can act as a sedative, making you fall into a deeper sleep quickly. So your sleep is out of order and imbalanced. You’ll have more slow-wave sleep and less REM sleep (which is the stage you are most likely to dream), decreasing your sleep quality.

Likewise, as alcohol affects your REM sleep and disrupts your sleep stages, you are more likely to experience insomnia.

Additionally, hand in hand with better sleep comes better moods, and more consistently positive moods.

2. Your skin can clear up and get firmer

Alcohol can spell bad news for your skin. It breaks down collagen, which we need to keep our skin firm, so it can speed up the signs of ageing. Add to that, the lack of vitamins due to drinking can give your skin a grey, shallow appearance.

A lot of people also fall asleep with their makeup on after a night of drinking. But, this can unfortunately clog your pores and trigger acne. So, a reduction in wrinkles and a better complexion can go hand in hand with limiting your alcohol intake.

3. Your body absorbs more vitamins

Studies have found that excessive drinking can lead to bodies lacking in ‘amino acids, proteins and certain vitamins’. Alcohol prevents nutrients travelling into our bloodstreams, which could seriously begin to impact our health.

While we can all make an effort to eat well, it’s not going to help your body absorb essential vitamins if you are drinking heavily. So, taking a month break can not only help your skin, but you’ll feel the difference in your body too.

4. Less alcohol will boost your immune system

Fighting off viruses has never been more important. But, did you know that alcohol can impact your immune system?

A study discovered that heavy drinking depletes your white blood cells, which are essential to fighting infection. This is noticeable in the hours after drinking. So, taking that break can help get your immune system fighting fit for the onslaught of winter colds and viruses.

5. Your memory will get better

Have you ever woken up with very little recollection of the night before, after drinking? Well, that’s because alcohol affects your short-term memory. It slows down how the nerves communicate in the hippocampus, which plays a vital role in helping you form and remember those memories.

This can happen to someone after five or more drinks, and impacts the person’s ability to remember the night before.

6. It improves your performance in the bedroom

Alcohol not only affects your sleep, but your sex life too. For men that’s because alcohol decreases the blood flow to your peenis, meaning that you might not be able to get an erection. If you do manage to get one (after more work than normal), alcohol reduces the intensity of your orgasm.

The same also goes for women. They may experience reduced lubrication and find it harder to reach orgasm, reducing the intensity and their performance overall.

For more information on the sleep benefits of Dry January, please visit the blog: https://www.mattressnextday.co.uk/snooze-news/post/why-dry-january-is-the-secret-to-better-sleep