About
Why “Alcohol Is Poison”?
Because it is chemistry, it is rarely said plainly, and you deserve to decide with clear eyes.
Alcohol is a poison in the chemistry sense: ethanol is toxic to cells, and there is no safe dose for cancer risk. The International Agency for Research on Cancer lists alcoholic beverages as a Group 1 carcinogen, and the World Health Organization says no level of alcohol consumption is safe for health. Meanwhile it is sold as relaxation, celebration and self-care.
That is where the name comes from, and it is where the lecture stops. This month is not a label. It is a 30-day health experiment. You keep the data, and you decide what day 31 is for. Wanting a break does not make you broken, and you do not need a diagnosis or a crisis to be curious about life with less alcohol in it.
What we believe
- A month with an end date beats a vow. Thirty days is a commitment you can make and finish.
- Environment and practice beat willpower. Evenings, weekends and stress need plans.
- Honest claims beat hype. A month does what the studies say, for the people the studies included, and not more.
- Safety comes before the challenge. Stopping suddenly is dangerous for some people. The fit check sorts you first, and Medical Prep is free.
- Your data is yours. Your answers stay on your own device.
What we are not
Alcohol Is Poison is an educational health program for adults. We are not a treatment program, a detox service, a therapist or a medical provider, and nothing here is medical advice. We never give doses, tapers or medication advice. If you are in crisis or having severe symptoms, call emergency services. In the US, 988 is the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and the SAMHSA helpline is 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
How this was built
Alcohol Is Poison is an independent educational project, written and run by a small team.
The program is built from the research cited on the science page, including the 2018 BMJ Open study of a month without alcohol, a 2025 review of Dry January, and the American Society of Addiction Medicine's 2020 withdrawal guideline. Every health claim names its source and is hedged to match.
The fit check, routing rules and symptom copy follow public primary-care screening practice and the ASAM guideline, and the thresholds are deliberately cautious. They have not yet been reviewed by a named clinician. Until they are, treat the fit check as a conservative sorting tool, and when in doubt, ask a doctor. When a reviewer is named, this page will say so.