AS many people start the New Year with resolutions, some are going teetotal for the first month of 2014.

Mariana Morris, who works at White October on Cowley Road, has signed up to do a sponsored ‘Dryathlon’ for Cancer Research UK.

Ms Morris, 30, took part last year and said she felt so much better for it she is doing it again. She hopes to rope in 25 colleagues to swap Tia Maria for tea to raise money for Cancer Research.

Ms Morris said: “I thought I probably drank too much and anything which would encourage me to reduce the amount was worth trying.”

Dryathletes pledge to stop drinking for a month and get sponsored to do so or donate money they would have spent on alcohol to Cancer Research.

Oxfordshire County Council leader Ian Hudspeth is also getting “on the wagon”.

Dryathletes can register as individuals or set up a team and get their friends, family and colleagues involved to motivate each other along the way.

A spokesman for the Royal College of Physicians (RCP) said: “Not consum-ing alcohol for a month could help you lose weight, save money, and sleep better, and hopefully those taking part in Dry January will drink less frequently throughout the rest of the year.

“Alcohol can be safe in small amounts if we allow our bodies time to recover.

“We recommend a safe alcohol consumption limit of between 0–21 units a week for men and 0–14 units a week for women, provided the total amount is not drunk in one or two bouts, and that there are two to three alcohol-free days a week.

“At these levels, most individuals are unlikely to come to harm.”

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