Alcohol seems to have lost its grip on American life in recent years. <\/p>\n
Younger adults are drinking less. Sober bars and alcohol-free member clubs are cropping up across the country. Nonalcoholic beer sales have soared. And content from influencers promoting a sober lifestyle have proliferated on social media.<\/p>\n
But rather than harnessing that momentum, the dietary guidelines that the Trump administration released earlier this month no longer put a concrete limit on alcohol consumption. The new directive is simply to \u201cconsume less alcohol for better overall health.\u201d<\/p>\n
In explaining the change, Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, offered a defense of one of society\u2019s oldest vices: Alcohol has a social benefit, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAlcohol is a social lubricant that brings people together,\u201d Oz said during a White House briefing on Jan. 7. \u201cIn the best-case scenario, I don\u2019t think you should drink alcohol, but it does allow people an excuse to bond and socialize, and there\u2019s probably nothing healthier than having a good time with friends in a safe way.\u201d<\/p>\n
His comments landed like a cultural Rorschach test, offering the most high-profile entry yet into an ongoing debate about whether alcohol is, primarily, a public health problem or a useful social crutch.<\/p>\n Some sociologists and psychologists saw Oz\u2019s statements as a response to an epidemic of loneliness and a tendency among some young people to opt for solo nights with a screen rather than trips to the bar. But the booming sober-influencer community \u2014 built largely by young adults who say alcohol isn\u2019t worth the risks \u2014 has spent the last couple of weeks decrying Oz\u2019s statements as a step backward.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are just concerned that this is going to impact people who are on the fence, whether they should stop drinking or not,\u201d Rachel Hechtman, a New York City content creator and sober life coach, said of the updated guidelines. \u201cWhen you\u2019re on the fence, you will look for any sign to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI mean, it\u2019s disgusting,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n Health experts said Oz\u2019s stance is a dangerous oversimplification that ignores decades of scientific findings.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think we have evidence to say that drinking is going to make you be more social and therefore be happier or have closer friends,\u201d said Priscilla Martinez, the deputy scientific director at the Alcohol Research Group, a nonprofit that investigates health issues related to alcohol use.<\/p>\n Last year, the group drafted a report meant to inform the new dietary guidelines. It concluded that the more you drink, the more likely you are to get an alcohol-related disease or die of one. The Trump administration went radio silent on the authors last year, Martinez said, and never published it.<\/p>\n Andrew Nixon, a spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services, said in a statement that the overhauled guidelines were \u201cbased on rigorous scientific review and independent oversight.\u201d He did not address questions about Martinez\u2019s report.<\/p>\n The prior guidelines (updates come every five years) suggested limiting drinking to one beverage per day for women and two per day for men, which Oz said lacked scientific evidence.<\/p>\n Research is mixed as to how many drinks an adult can safely consume. The World Health Organization has said there\u2019s no safe limit for alcohol consumption and even light or moderate drinking can cause cancer. Studies have also shown that regularly drinking alcohol raises the risk of liver damage and several cancers.<\/p>\n A federal report in January 2025 concluded that even one daily drink could increase the chances of liver cirrhosis, esophageal cancer and oral cancer.<\/p>\n However, a different federal report, published in December 2024, suggested that moderate drinking, compared with abstaining from alcohol, was linked to a lower risk of overall death and death from heart disease but an increased risk of breast cancer. Nixon said the new guidelines align with those December findings.<\/p>\n Health experts caution against the idea that social isolation poses a greater threat to young adults than moderate alcohol consumption, especially since research is not clear as to whether drinking can reduce loneliness or the physical health problems associated with loneliness.<\/p>\n Some studies have shown, however, that moderate drinking can enhance positive moods and help strangers connect.<\/p>\n \u201cThese social bonding studies do not challenge the data related to physical health complications related to drinking, but they do suggest that social outcomes also may be relevant to health, especially among otherwise healthy, light to moderate drinkers,\u201d said Michael Sayette, a psychology professor at the University of Pittsburgh.<\/p>\n Scott Galloway, a marketing professor at New York University who has written about modern masculinity, has been among the most vocal proponents of the idea that drinking plays a crucial social role in American society. In an appearance on the HBO show \u201cReal Time with Bill Maher\u201d in November, Galloway called the anti-alcohol movement the \u201cworst thing that\u2019s happened to young people.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe risks to your 25-year-old liver are dwarfed by the risk of social isolation,\u201d he said, encouraging men in particular to \u201cget out, drink more.\u201d<\/p>\n Beer companies, unsurprisingly, have embraced this line of thinking, with several advertising their products as a solution to a lack of socializing.<\/p>\n Last week, Dos Equis announced the return of its \u201cMost Interesting Man in the World\u201d ad character as part of a campaign that encourages friends to share stories over a beer. \u201cPeople aren\u2019t just thirsty for beer \u2014 they are thirsty for memorable experiences,\u201d the company\u2019s press release said.<\/p>\n Heineken\u2019s CEO, Dolf van den Brink, told the Financial Times in October that discussions about alcohol\u2019s health risks should consider its role as a \u201csocial lubricant\u201d \u2014 the same phrase Oz used months later \u2014 particularly during \u201cthis time of loneliness and a mental health epidemic.\u201d The interview followed a Heineken ad campaign called \u201cSocial off Socials,\u201d launched in April, that framed the company\u2019s product as a way to get people to put down their phones and connect in real life.<\/p>\n The alcohol industry has taken a financial hit over the last four years as adults have been drinking less, according to a Bloomberg analysis. Public health researchers and consumer trend analysts attribute the trend, in part, to #sobertok \u2014 a community of TikTokers documenting their sobriety \u2014 as well as the rise in grocery and housing costs. As of July, 54% of U.S. adults reported they consumed alcohol, down from 62% in 2023, according to a Gallup survey. Among young adults, 66% reported in the survey that one or two drinks per day was bad for their health.<\/p>\n Given those trends, some nutrition experts viewed the new guidelines as a victory for alcohol industry lobbyists. When asked about that, Nixon said, \u201cIt is absurd to suggest that anything other than gold standard science guided our work on this presidential priority.\u201d<\/p>\n In response to the government\u2019s vague language on alcohol, many sober influencers have posted videos reminding their followers that fun can be had without drinking.<\/p>\n Hechtman, who quit drinking in 2021 after participating in Dry January, a challenge to abstain from alcohol for 31 days, said her social life has flourished since then.<\/p>\n \u201cI stopped drinking, and I realized, \u2018Wait, I\u2019m having more fun than I ever had before,\u2019\u201d she said, adding that the rise of alcohol-free social spaces in New York City and the increasing popularity of sobriety have helped.<\/p>\n One of these sober spaces is The Maze, the city\u2019s first dry members club. Its founder, Justin Gurland \u2014 a licensed social worker who is 17 years sober \u2014 said he created the club after recognizing how deeply alcohol is embedded in social life.<\/p>\n \u201cWithout alcohol as a buffer or crutch, people tend to be more present and more intentional,\u201d he said. \u201cIt may take a few extra minutes for people to warm up, but once they do, the connections are more grounded and lasting.\u201d<\/p>\n Eric Klinenberg, a sociology professor at New York University who has studied social isolation and its health effects, said the country could use more gathering spaces that don\u2019t involve alcohol.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you ask me how to promote public health in the United States, getting people to drink more would probably not be at the top of my list,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s probably other kinds of social spaces that I would advocate for \u2014 playgrounds and parks and athletic facilities.\u201d<\/p>\n Oz, however, doubled down on his statements after the dietary guidelines came out. In a post on X the next day, he offered a clarification to a comment he\u2019d made advising people not to drink at breakfast: \u201cBrunch is obviously different than breakfast. (Yes, still keep to a minimum.)\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/media-cldnry.s-nbcnews.com\/image\/upload\/t_focal-760x428,f_auto,q_auto:best\/mpx\/2704722219\/2026_01\/1767829637672_nn_ath_new_dietary_guidelines_260107_1920x1080-vtcscy.jpg\")
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