Americans want to live healthier in 2025. Here’s what that looks like, from alcohol to exercise

The Ipsos Consumer Tracker asks Americans questions about culture, the economy and the forces that shape our lives. Here's one thing we learned this week.
 

With 2025 around the corner, many Americans have self-improvement on their minds. But what habits do they want to kick, and what new ones do they want to pick up? 

To get the answers, the Ipsos Consumer Tracker asked the nation about its resolutions for the new year. 

From gym signups to diets, health has long been the central focus of Americans’ resolutions. Indeed, most people say they want to eat better, exercise more, or drink more water in 2025. But younger Americans are particularly likely to resolve to healthier living — and even if you’ve been keeping up with Gen Z wellness trends, the extent of that enthusiasm is striking. Half of Americans aged 18 to 34 they’ve resolved to drink less alcohol, and half say they’ve resolved to start or continue therapy, according to the Tracker. 

It’s the latest evidence for a generational shift in attitudes on health, with serious implications for brands in a range of industries, from food and beverage to fitness to telehealth. 

This is the second consecutive year that we’ve asked Americans about their resolutions. Compared with last year, ever more Americans want to eat healthier — but the single greatest increase was in the percentage of people who vowed to get more sleep (up 8 points to 69%). 

The only real decreases, on the other hand, landed outside of personal health. As Matt Carmichael noted, the number of people who want to reduce their carbon footprint fell 6 points to 37%. (Consider this yet another datapoint to watch over the next few years.) 

But how do these resolutions vary by age? 

Across the board, older Americans are less likely to say that they’re making resolutions at all, while younger Americans are more likely. Generally, their priorities are distributed similarly. But the exceptions are noteworthy.

We can see that younger Americans drove the increased interest in getting more sleep, with 84% of 18- to 34-year-olds naming it as a resolution. They were also nearly twice as likely as Americans over 55 to make a resolution around work-life balance. (Among the 18 to 34 cohort, work-life balance was mentioned even more frequently than eating healthier.) 

And then there’s mental health. Half of Americans aged 18 to 34 say they’ve resolved to start or continue therapy in the new year, compared with one in four Americans over 55. It’s a finding that lines up with previous Ipsos studies and deep dives on generational attitudes toward mental health: six years ago, 27% of people across 31 countries named mental health as one of the biggest health problems in their country; today, that figure is 45%. 

But it’s the gap in attitudes on alcohol consumption that may have the greatest commercial reverberations.  
 

Half of 18- to 34-year-olds say they’ve resolved to drink less alcohol in 2025, compared to one in four Americans over 55. While Americans aren’t quite as likely to commit to Dry January as to drinking less alcohol in general, younger Americans are still more likely to participate than older Americans, according to the Tracker. 

"Data from the Ipsos Alcohol Consumption Tracker (ACT) indicates that young Americans cut their alcohol consumption by a third during January compared to the rest of the year. At the same time, their overall alcohol consumption has declined by nearly 20% over the past six years," said Sam Agarwal, a vice president with Ipsos’ Market Strategy and Understanding practice. 

"This trend marks a pivotal moment for beverage alcohol brands to innovate, as the growing interest in reduced alcohol consumption among young adults opens up opportunities for non-alcoholic and low-alcohol alternatives. Brands that embrace this shift can capture emerging markets and build long-term loyalty by aligning with the evolving health-conscious values of the younger generation."

More insights from this wave of the Ipsos Consumer Tracker:

The holidays are making us happy, joyful and stressed 

Most people don’t know how tariffs work (and some even admit that)

Most think tariffs will increase prices, but aren’t doing anything about it

Our outlook keeps improving

Here's what we resolve for 2025