Are there any disadvantages when ditching the booze?

I’m going to begin by being blunt. Alcohol is a toxin. Granted, it’s a toxin that makes us feel all fluffy and warm, but it weakens our immune system and therefore increases our chances of falling foul of a debilitating (and possibly life-limiting) condition.

The body wants rid of it as soon as possible, which puts big pressure on the liver and also (ears prick up) any fat-burning that the body is in the middle of doing will be immediately halted. Cheerful, eh? I’m not here for scare tactics, I just like to give you the facts. So today we’re looking at the topic of going alcohol free. Not just Monday to Thursdays, but giving it up altogether. Forever. Always. Hark… I hear a pin drop. Silence.

We think the worst, that the good times will never be quite so good but, like smoking, it’s just a habit and it will take a period of adjustment.

So while we consider the advantages of losing the booze (lower blood pressure, less risk of bowel, breast, mouth and liver cancer, better sleep, improved mood and mental health – and that’s only the start), might there actually be any disadvantages to going alcohol free?

More silence. I’ve searched umpteen sites, talked to my alcohol-free friends, and the main things they’ve mentioned by way of any kind of snag was other people’s attitudes. They think your abstaining is going to ruin their night out, because you’re perceived to be standing on the outside looking on at their ‘drunken debauchery’. Which, of course, you’re not. That’s their issue, and one which will fade over time, especially if you avoid holier-than-thou declarations of saintliness, which can get right up people’s noses. There’s nothing worse than an exdrinker acting like an exsmoker, who coughs loudly any time anyone lights up.

The perception is that alcohol adds colour to one’s life. Does it? Does it really?