Meharry Medical College’s Dry January® USA” Campaign

As the nation’s largest historically Black academic health center, Meharry Medical College brings a health equity lens to Dry January® USA.

Since 2022, Meharry has served as the U.S. licensee for Dry January® USA, working in collaboration with Alcohol Change UK. Through its leadership in health education and research, the college continues to inform the public about the effects of alcohol on cancer risk, immune function, sleep quality, and overall health.

Dry January has gained more traction in the last decade as more people are giving up alcohol for the first 31 days of the year. There’s a load of benefits that come with it including saving a big chunk of change and healthier habits.

Research shows that just taking a month off alone from drinking leads to lower blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes risk as well as lower cancer-related proteins in the blood. It also leads to less drinking for the rest of the year.

The sober month comes at a really good time following the holiday season. Data shows almost a quarter of Tennesseans’ overall alcohol consumption for the year happens in just that six-week period from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Eve.

The initiative comes at a critical time. In Tennessee, alcohol-related deaths have increased by nearly 98% over the past decade, with more than 70,000 emergency room visits each year linked to alcohol misuse. Excessive drinking is also associated with higher risks of cancer, weakened immunity, sleep disruption, mental health challenges, and domestic violence, harms that disproportionately affect vulnerable populations.

Overall, Meharry Medical College wants the campaign to help people self-reflect on how alcohol may be impacting not just themselves, but their bodies, sleep, wallets and those around them.