Health Update: Health Update: Dry January is here, but Gen Z is already exploring sobriety – What Experts Say– What Experts Say.
Physical and mental health, social media, financial hardship and marijuana legislation are several factors of Gen Z sobriety.
The reason drinking among adults hit a record low
Fewer Americans are drinking alcohol, and more now see even moderate drinking as a health risk, according to a new Gallup poll.
unbranded – Lifestyle
The new year brings countless resolutions. For some, it starts with Dry January, a month-long challenge void of any alcohol consumption.
However, a new generation may not need the challenge at all. They already aren’t drinking.
Many young adults are stepping away from alcohol entirely, choosing sobriety as a lifestyle, rather than a 30-day endeavor.
Cierra Boone, 25, has been sober for almost three years. Her abstinence weaves into a larger trend: Gen Zers, those born between 1997 and 2012, are not drinking, and they haven’t been. Between 2001 and 2023, global research firm Gallup reported a 11% dip in adults between the ages of 18-34 who had at least one alcoholic beverage within the past week.
“I don’t think it’s a blip at this point. If anything, I think this trend is going to continue to strengthen,” Dr. Jared Harp, addiction psychiatrist at Cleveland Clinic, told USA TODAY.
Drinking for the first time in her teens, Boone told USA TODAY that for years, alcohol served as a form of escapism. From a family that struggles with addiction and mental illness, she is choosing a different path.
“I’m sure my liver is happy and honestly, it’s brought me closer to people I drifted away from while I was in active alcoholism,” Boone, of Cooter, Missouri, told USA TODAY. “It’s made me feel a lot more grounded … and honestly, it’s brought me closer to God, and that’s the biggest benefit of it all for me.”
Harp said young adults are proving to be more intentional about their alcohol consumption in comparison to older generations.
“I think Dry January allows everyone to just have a glimpse of what intentionality and awareness regarding their drinking can look like,” he said.
Why is Gen Z drinking less?
There are a few explanations as to why young adults are drinking less.
One reason is that Gen Zers are more conscious of their physical and mental health, Dr. Joseph Volpicelli, founder of The Volpicelli Addiction Treatment Center in Pennsylvania, told USA TODAY.
A 2024 study conducted by strategy and management consultant McKinsey & Company found that 56% of Gen Zers consider fitness a “very high priority” compared to 40% of other adults in the U.S.
Perhaps the main reason Boone stopped drinking was because she began to prioritize her mental health, a trait shared among much of Gen Z.
According to a 2018 study by the American Psychological Association, 37% of Gen Zers are likely to receive mental health support, like therapy, compared to 35% of Millennials, 26% of Gen Zers and 22% of Boomers.
For young adults who may be looking to prioritize their health come the new year, Dry January, in particular, provides a 30-day reset, in which folks may sleep better, lose a few pounds and feel less anxious, Volpicelli said.
The impact of technology, social media
Social media’s looming presence has also had an impact on Gen Z sobriety.
Volpicelli, who has a 17-year-old granddaughter, said social experiences are different than when he was in high school. As a teenager, the party revolved around a beer keg, he said, but this isn’t always the case anymore.
Volpicelli, 72, said his granddaughter and other young people he sees at the treatment center spend more time together virtually, meaning alcohol isn’t the center of the gathering.
Research backs this. In 1991, 64.4% of high school seniors said they had been drunk at least once in their life, but by 2024, only 33% of high school seniors reported the same, according to Dutch research firm RaboResearch. And the dip? Around 2012, RaboResearch found, when smartphones became an integral part of the teenage experience.
Pulling back on social stigma
Another case for drinking less: When young adults are together, the stigma around sobriety seems to have shifted, Harp at Cleveland Clinic said.
“For a long time, if someone wasn’t drinking … you’d at least maybe have a feeling of, ‘Are people questioning why I’m not drinking?'” Harp said. “But with cigarettes, no one is ever going to ask, or very rarely, ‘Why aren’t they smoking?’ We all kind of appreciate that there are health consequences of smoking. I think there’s almost a trend of viewing alcohol the same way. It’s kind of like, ‘Oh yeah, alcohol use may not be the healthiest thing, so it kind of makes sense they’re abstaining.'”
Guinevere Goodwin, 27, of Springfield, Missouri, previously worked for three years in the bar industry and she agreed, the mindset is shifting.
“I actually think it’s something that is celebrated in the industry because there are so many former service workers who have had to fight like hell to be sober,” she said.
Goodwin has taken a step away from alcohol herself for the past few months. She said she’s enjoyed feeling more herself, capable of connecting clearer with friends when they do go out.
Money is tight and alcohol is expensive
Financial hardships are also playing a role in Gen Z’s sobriety.
According to a 2025 Bank of American study, 33% of Gen Zers are worried about their finances and of those, 52% say economic instability is the root cause. In an effort to stabilize, about 64% of those surveyed said they focus on reducing their expenses, including dining out.
Ten years ago, households led by an adult over the age of 30 spent 1.1% of their income on alcohol. Today, this figure is closer to 0.74%, RaboResearch reported this year.
Goodwin said the financial burden of drinking regularly was a struggle for her. Between a few bottles of wine a week and eating out, she spent about $200 a month on alcohol.
Legalization of marijuana
Another reason Gen Z is turning away from booze: They are exploring another type of high.
As marijuana is legalized medically and recreationally throughout more of the country, it has become a leading cause of Gen Z alcohol sobriety. Boone said marijuana has helped ease her transition.
In 2022, 69% of adults between 18 and 24 said they preferred marijuana to alcohol, according to a survey conducted by cannabis industry data hub New Frontier Data.
As of December 2025, 40 states had legalized medical marijuana and more than 20 states had legalized recreational, per DISA Global Solutions.
Binge drinking remains an issue
Though Gen Z may be consuming less alcohol, Harp at Cleveland Clinic said binge drinking, consuming a large amount of alcohol over a short period of time, remains a widespread issue. For the average adult, binge drinking is considered four to five drinks within a two-hour period, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
A 2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health survey found that 21.7% of adults 18 and up in the U.S. reported binge drinking in the past month.
Give yourself grace this Dry January
Sober-curious? Dry January can be a healthy way to assess alcohol consumption. Learn more about the challenge and tips to be successful.
“I like to look at Dry January not as a morality play but as a 30-day experiment to see how you feel. The goal isn’t perfection. It’s to get information,” Volpicelli said. “If you find that you have a hard time controlling your drinking during Dry January, it’s important to reach out and get help.”
Individuals struggling with alcoholism may contact the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for free by calling 1-800-662-4357 or by texting their zip code to 435748.
Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@usatoday.com.