What is zebra striping, and can it help you drink mindfully this Christmas?

Sipping non-alcoholic drinks between glasses of mulled wine* and champagne at the Christmas work party this year could help you feel more perky the morning after.

Waitrose & Partners’ Food and Drink Report 2024-25 has named ‘zebra striping’ – the concept of alternating between alcoholic drinks and a non-alcoholic ones – as one of the big trends of the year.

"The way customers consume alcohol has changed," says the supermarket’s head of beer, wine and spirits, Pierpaolo Petrassi. "At Waitrose, no and low sales are up by nearly a fifth and the range and popularity of reduced alcohol products is increasing all the time."

What is zebra striping?

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"Zebra striping is the new name for alternating between low alcohol or alcohol-free drinks and alcoholic drinks instead of drinking purely alcoholic drinks in a single occasion, such as night out with friends or a work Christmas party," explains Dr Richard Piper, CEO at Alcohol Change UK.

While Michael Baggs, brand leader for non-alcoholic beer company Mash Gang, adds: "It’s becoming an increasingly popular way for people to join a social gathering where alcohol is central, while being mindful about consumption."

What are the benefits of the trend?

Alternating between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks can help slow down your overall rate of alcohol consumption.

"Switching between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks will encourage you to pace yourself, allowing you to be more aware of how much alcohol you are consuming," says Dr Ashwin Sharma from online pharmacy MedExpress. "Additionally, hydrating non-alcoholic drinks such as water will help counteract the dehydrating effects of alcohol.

"Dehydration can cause fatigue, headaches and poor concentration, dampening any festivities planned. By keeping hydrated, you can better maintain your energy levels, ensuring you can be present, cope with a busy schedule more effectively and enjoy the Christmas holidays."

This tactic can also help reduce the impact the following day.

"While switching to non-alcoholic drinks doesn’t directly speed up the processing of alcohol throughout the body – as the liver works at a fixed rate of one unit per hour on average – it can help to reduce the overall amount of alcohol you consume in one session," explains Sharma. "Therefore, zebra striping can significantly reduce the severity of your hangover symptoms."

How could this tactic help people at Christmas parties?

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"The festive party season can be a time where drinking seems to surround us, making it harder to cut down, even if we want to," highlights Piper. "However, the truth is, alcohol is entirely optional at every event and on every occasion, and we should never feel we ‘have’ to consume it.

"Zebra striping can really help because it offers a simple and easy to follow method to help us moderate, preventing one or two drinks becoming more."

Baggs adds: "Zebra striping could help reduce the challenges of overindulging with alcohol. Specifically with Christmas parties it enables people to spend longer present at the evening, with diminished risk of drinking too much and doing something stupid.

"More non-alcoholic options also enables anyone driving, abstaining or cutting back to join in and stay longer without feeling a burden."

Why is it increasing in popularity?

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"As a method for moderation, alternating between alcoholic drinks and no or low-alcohol options during any drinking session is not necessarily new, but the term zebra striping has captured the concept and injected fresh energy into the trend, particularly among the Gen-Z and millennial generations," reflects Piper.

"Despite what alcohol companies might try to make us believe, mindful and merry can co-exist, and more of us are starting to realise this fact and decide when and how much we drink."

The shift towards drinking in moderation has been facilitated by the boom in the non-alcoholic drinks sector, which has made low or non-alcoholic alternatives more widely available.

He adds: "We also have so many amazing alcohol-free proseccos, wines, beers, spirits, mocktails and other no and low-alcohol drinks to enjoy when zebra striping this party season, meaning we can have all the fun, without any of the negative effects."

* Drink responsibly