• Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

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Join us for a Healthy Dry January

Screen Shot 2016-01-05 at 15.40.00To support Dry January, Darlington Borough Council’s Healthy Darlington team is organising a Healthy Darlington Roadshow and Health Fair to encourage people to stay healthy and cut down on their alcohol intake.

The Healthy Darlington Roadshow and Health Fair, which is the first of many, takes place on Thursday 7January from 10am to 5pm in the Dolphin Centre reception area.

The Roadshow will feature a Dry January Challenge – encouraging individuals to sign up to stop, or reduce, their days and level of drinking in January. There will also be stalls from many organisations, offering support and advice on health and wellbeing issues, including basic health checks and information on how you can eat well and move more to help you and your family stay healthy.  

Dry January promotes healthier drinking habits and encourages individuals to give up alcohol for a month and to moderate their drinking habits in the longer term. If you haven’t signed up to the challenge you still have time. Thousands of people took up the challenge last year and evaluation found that as a result more people became aware of the damaging effects of alcohol and looked at their own drinking habits and the personal impact the amount that they drank had on their health and others around them. 

Siobhan Caffrey, who took part in last year’s Dry January challenge said: “Staying healthy is important to me.  The Dry January campaign offered a great health goal and a great way to save money. I enjoyed the challenge and felt better and healthier for cutting out alcohol.  Surprisingly, the 31 days flew by.  I have already signed up to take part this year and have encouraged my family and friends to too. Take the challenge – you’ll be surprised how much better you feel.”

Miriam Davidson Darlington Borough Council’s Director of Public Health, who has also signed up to the Dry January challenge said: “The economic costs of alcohol misuse to Darlington is huge, there are other costs which are harder to measure, these include the costs to families or the damage to the future of young people as a result of alcohol related harm.”

Councillor Andy Scott, Darlington Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Partnerships said:  “We are seeing a continued increase in people young and old, who are suffering ill health through alcohol abuse.  Dry January is your opportunity to take stock – see if you able to go without alcohol for this short time.  Your health, your weight and your wallet will thank you for it.  I have signed up to take part and shall be encouraging others to do so too.”

For more information visit www.darlington.gov.uk/alcohol 

To sign up to Dry January visit www.dryjanuary.org.uk

By admin