How to Eat to Change How You Drink

Have you ever wondered why it’s so hard to cut back on drinking, even when you genuinely want to? In How to Eat to Change How You Drink, Dr. Brooke Scheller, a clinical nutritionist and founder of Functional Sobriety, argues that the answer may be hiding not in your mind, but in your body. She contends that alcohol dependence and overuse are deeply connected to nutritional imbalances, biochemical triggers, and gut-brain dynamics—meaning that what you eat can profoundly alter how you drink.

Scheller’s central claim challenges conventional wisdom: sobriety is not just psychological or spiritual; it is physiological. By healing your gut, balancing your blood sugar, and replenishing depleted nutrients, you can reduce cravings, stabilize your mood, and make alcohol less alluring to your body in the first place. This integrated framework—what she calls Functional Sobriety—proposes that food is medicine for the mind and a biochemical therapy for recovery.

The Whisper That Becomes a Scream

Scheller begins her book with an invitation to listen to the subtle “whisper” inside that questions your relationship with alcohol. In her own story, that whisper turned into a “scream” after two decades of drinking. Despite being a doctor of clinical nutrition, Scheller couldn’t outsmart alcohol with vitamins or detoxes—her body was biochemically stuck in a cycle of anxiety, fatigue, and addiction. Like many of her readers, she had a successful career and a healthy lifestyle, yet felt powerless against daily wine rituals. Her journey to sobriety revealed a powerful truth: alcohol doesn’t just affect the brain; it hijacks nutrition, hormones, gut health, and the systems that regulate cravings and dopamine.

Functional Sobriety: A Biological Approach to Recovery

Unlike traditional sobriety programs that focus on psychological willpower or spiritual surrender, Scheller’s approach looks “under the hood”—examining how alcohol distorts metabolism, depletes vital nutrients like B vitamins and magnesium, and damages organs like the liver and gut. She maps out a four-part journey: first acknowledging your relationship with alcohol; second, understanding the biochemical systems it disrupts; third, using nutrition to repair the damage; and fourth, cultivating a supportive community and new habits that reinforce wellness.

Her Functional Sobriety program builds on functional medicine principles—finding and treating the root causes of disease rather than the symptoms. Instead of labeling people as “alcoholic” or not, she introduces the idea of drinking archetypes: The Social Drinker, The Stress Drinker, and The Habitual Drinker. Each archetype represents different triggers and biological pathways driving consumption. Understanding your unique archetype lets you personalize your nutrition to manage cravings more effectively.

The Science Behind the Cravings

Scheller explains that much of alcohol dependency is biochemical. Alcohol manipulates blood sugar and dopamine, weakens gut microbiota, inflames tissues, and alters neurotransmitters like serotonin and GABA. The result: heightened anxiety, poor sleep, brain fog, and emotional instability—all of which often lead back to drinking. By stabilizing blood sugar through regular meals, restoring gut health, and consuming foods rich in amino acids, B vitamins, and antioxidants, people can reduce biochemical triggers and rewire their reward systems.

She also discusses how oxygenating foods (like beets), probiotics, and complex carbohydrates can rebuild the biochemical foundations of good mood and energy. Intriguingly, Scheller connects low blood sugar and nutrient deficiency to alcohol cravings: when your body’s fuel is depleted, it literally begs for sugar—and alcohol is just another fast-acting form of sugar.

Beyond Abstinence: Learning to Thrive

While Scheller recognizes the social and emotional dimensions of drinking, she makes a revolutionary case for changing one’s lifestyle through biology first. She provides an entire four-week food guide for readers who want to drink less or none at all, explaining how daily meal timing, protein intake, and micronutrient replenishment can serve as anchors during the transition. These strategies aren’t only meant to stop drinking—they help readers feel better, think clearer, and reconnect with their purpose. Her clients often report not just improved moods but dramatic changes in physical health: weight loss, reduced anxiety, and normalized hormones.

Why This Approach Matters

Alcohol addiction is often treated as a purely psychological problem, but Scheller’s work challenges that paradigm. Just as functional medicine revolutionized the treatment of chronic illness by considering nutrition and lifestyle, Functional Sobriety reframes addiction as a physiological imbalance that can be healed. Her approach integrates findings from neuroscience, endocrinology, and gut-brain research—offering hope for anyone who feels “stuck” between social drinking and dependency. “You don’t have to hit rock bottom to get better,” she insists; you can begin by healing your biochemistry one meal at a time.

In Scheller’s hands, food becomes a catalyst for transformation—not just physical recovery but emotional resilience. Nutrition changes how you feel, and how you feel changes how you drink.

This is what sets Scheller apart from traditional recovery authors like Holly Whitaker (Quit Like a Woman) or Annie Grace (This Naked Mind). They emphasize mindset, community, and emotional healing; Scheller adds the missing biological component—nutritional rehabilitation—and shows that when your body is nourished, your mind is freer to choose. Ultimately, this book isn’t only about quitting alcohol, but about reclaiming health, clarity, and joy by aligning what you eat with how you want to live.

Scheller invites readers to identify their unique relationship with alcohol through her powerful framework of drinking archetypes: The Social Drinker, The Stress Drinker, and The Habitual Drinker. Each archetype represents not only behavioral patterns but also underlying biochemical drivers of alcohol consumption. By recognizing the archetype you fit into, you can tailor your nutrition, lifestyle, and emotional tools to address specific triggers.

The Social Drinker

If you tend to drink exclusively at gatherings, events, or weekends—often more than intended—you may be the Social Drinker. Social drinkers are not physically dependent on alcohol but emotionally and socially tethered to it. Scheller explains how dopamine and blood sugar spikes after that first drink create a biochemical feedback loop that intensifies cravings. For social drinkers, food becomes a direct intervention. Consuming high-protein, fiber-rich snacks before attending events (like nuts or hummus with veggies) can reduce the “first-drink domino effect.”

She also highlights the power of substituting social rituals rather than abstaining from social life. Bringing your own mocktail to a party, or “holding a drink” that contains seltzer and lime, helps bypass peer pressure while allowing full participation. (Similar strategies appear in Ruby Warrington’s Sober Curious, which reframes social sobriety as an act of empowerment rather than deprivation.)

The Stress Drinker

Stress Drinkers consume alcohol to soothe anxiety, unwind from work, or manage emotional overload. Their relationship with alcohol is rooted in cortisol—the stress hormone—and the depletion of nutrients that fuel resilience. Scheller’s client “Charlotte” exemplifies this archetype: wine became her energy source after long workdays until Scheller helped her replace evening drinks with balanced snacks containing protein and fiber. Eating strategically before triggering times (like 5 p.m.) minimizes cortisol-driven cravings. She also encourages incorporating magnesium-rich foods (dark chocolate, avocados, leafy greens) to reduce stress naturally.

The Habitual Drinker

Habitual Drinkers experience physical dependence and drink almost daily, often without realizing how deeply alcohol has integrated into their physiology. This archetype faces the greatest biological challenges: gut dysfunction, neurotransmitter imbalances, and nutrient depletion. Scheller shows that heavy drinking disrupts amino acid synthesis—reducing dopamine and serotonin—and damages the liver’s detoxification pathways. Her recommendation: initiate recovery through nutrition even before quitting cold turkey. By restoring digestive enzymes, consuming B-vitamin–rich meals, and using liver-supporting foods like beets and cruciferous vegetables, Habitual Drinkers can safely rebalance their bodies.

"Once you understand your archetype," Scheller writes, "you stop blaming yourself. You start recognizing your body’s signals and responding with nourishment instead of shame."

By classifying drinking behavior as physiological rather than moral, Scheller removes stigma and replaces it with agency. Her quiz and reflective exercises mirror diagnostic tools used in functional medicine—not to label, but to illuminate patterns. She urges readers to journal their triggers and bodily sensations around drinking, cultivating self-awareness that transforms habit into conscious choice. This archetype system becomes both mirror and map, guiding readers toward personalized change.

Hippocrates once said, “All disease begins in the gut.” Scheller updates that wisdom for the modern era of drinking: much of our psychological distress and alcohol cravings begin there too. The gut is not merely a digestive organ—it’s a command center connected to mood, cognition, immunity, and even decision-making through the gut-brain axis. Alcohol disrupts this complex system, weakening the microbiome and sabotaging serotonin production.

How Alcohol Damages the Gut

Frequent drinking erodes the gut lining, alters microbial diversity, and promotes inflammation. Scheller explains intestinal permeability, or “leaky gut”: the widening of junctions between intestinal cells that allows toxins, undigested food particles, and bacteria to leak into the bloodstream. This feeds systemic inflammation, fatigue, and autoimmune reactions. Alcohol’s byproducts, particularly acetaldehyde, directly destroy these cells and trigger immune overreactions. The result? Poor digestion, food sensitivities, and hormonal chaos.

Why Microbes Crave Alcohol

Here’s the startling insight: gut microbes can influence your cravings. Certain “bad” bacteria thrive on sugar and alcohol and signal to your brain via the vagus nerve to consume more of what they want. When these microbes dominate your microbiome, it becomes a biochemical peer-pressure party. Scheller humorously calls them “the bad roommates in your belly.” Restoring microbial balance—through fiber, prebiotics, and fermented foods like sauerkraut or yogurt—cuts off cravings at their source.

Healing the Gut Through Food

Scheller prescribes fiber-rich vegetables (broccoli, kale, asparagus), probiotic foods, and anti-inflammatory nutrients like vitamin C and omega-3s to repair the gut lining and cultivate healthy microbiota. She also emphasizes hydration and regular bowel movements as crucial detox pathways. “Your daily poop,” she quips, “is one of your most powerful wellness tools.” Consistent waste removal allows hormones and toxins linked to drinking to leave the body instead of recirculating.

A New View of Digestion

Scheller turns digestion into a mindfulness practice. By learning to “become besties with your bowels,” you gain insight into stress, emotion, and diet quality. She teaches readers to monitor bowel regularity and bloating as indicators of gut health recovery. Within weeks of alcohol elimination, many experience improved digestion, skin clarity, and mental stability—a reflection of gut-brain healing. (For comparison, David Perlmutter’s Brain Maker explores a similar microbiome–mental health connection.)

Key Takeaway

To heal your mind, start by healing your gut. Sobriety is not just abstinence—it’s rebuilding the ecosystem inside you that determines how you feel, think, and choose.

Scheller reveals that alcohol cravings often stem from blood sugar instability and hormonal imbalance, not weak willpower. Every sip of alcohol spikes your blood sugar, causing short-term euphoria followed by a crash—prompting your body to seek more sugar or alcohol for relief. This roller coaster fuels anxiety, fatigue, and overeating, especially in stressful environments.

The Physiology of Craving

Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) triggers stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline, signaling hunger and craving. Alcohol acts as fast fuel, momentarily raising glucose and providing dopamine reward—like giving your body a candy IV. Scheller draws from clinical cases to show how stabilizing daytime meal patterns prevents evening binge drinking. Eating within one hour of waking and every 3–4 hours thereafter keeps blood sugar balanced and minimizes cravings.

Hormones at War

The endocrine system—responsible for hormones like estrogen, testosterone, and cortisol—is deeply affected by alcohol. In women, alcohol disrupts estrogen metabolism by taxing the liver, leading to mood swings, PMS, infertility, and even elevated cancer risk. In men, alcohol converts testosterone into estrogen through the aromatase pathway, contributing to fatigue, weight gain, and libido loss. Scheller encourages both sexes to restore hormone balance through nutrient-rich foods, stress reduction, and avoiding fasted states early in recovery.

Practical Nutrition Solutions

• Increase protein intake at each meal (lean meats, fish, eggs, beans, Greek yogurt).
• Add complex carbs and healthy fats to slow glucose metabolism.
• Use micronutrient supplements—magnesium, zinc, B vitamins—to repair endocrine pathways.
• Avoid late-night meals and manage emotional stress to normalize cortisol.

By reframing cravings as physiological panic signals instead of moral failure, Scheller empowers readers to intervene with nutrition rather than guilt. Eating mindfully becomes a biochemical act of self-compassion and an antidote to relapse.

The heart of Scheller’s book is her 4-week plan to “eat to drink less.” Her Functional Sobriety food framework uses macronutrients, timing, and functional foods to heal the body while breaking the habit of drinking. It’s not about diet culture—it’s about biochemical repair.

Meal Timing and Blood Sugar Control

Eating consistently—every three to four hours—anchors the day, replacing drinking rituals with nourishing routines. Breakfast within one hour of waking stabilizes hormones, and afternoon snacks between 3 and 5 p.m. combat “happy hour” triggers. Scheller’s schedules are practical enough to fit working lives, offering sustainable structure during detox phases.

Functional Food Categories

• Protein Foods: Support neurotransmitter production and satiety.
• Fiber-Rich Carbohydrates: Regulate glucose and nourish gut microbes.
• Healthy Fats: Stabilize hormones and brain function.
• Liver Foods: Beets, cruciferous vegetables, and dandelion greens detoxify residues of long-term drinking.
• Brain Foods: Omega-3s, matcha, and dark chocolate elevate cognitive clarity and dopamine balance.

Sugar, Mocktails, and Emotional Substitutes

Scheller takes a compassionate stance on sugar cravings: don’t fight them initially. For many, sweets function as transitional dopamine sources during early sobriety. She advises pairing sweets with protein to prevent blood sugar spikes. As for mocktails, they can help or hinder—use them mindfully if they ease social anxiety but avoid them if they trigger nostalgia for alcohol. Her recipes, like turmeric-ginger mocktails and magnesium tonics, combine functionality with flavor, helping readers enjoy ritual without regression.

Food as Therapy

Beyond the recipes and plans, Scheller reframes daily meals as healing acts of ritual, similar to how AA encourages daily reflection. Each plate becomes both medicine and meditation, reinforcing the message that nourishment replaces numbness. When you eat intentionally, you teach your body—and mind—that pleasure can come from repair, not destruction.

While food forms the foundation of recovery, Scheller complements it with tools that amplify healing—vitamins, amino acids, herbs, and lifestyle habits aligned with a holistic functional medicine approach.

Key Supplements for Alcohol Recovery

• B-Complex Vitamins: Restore depleted coenzymes needed for serotonin and dopamine synthesis.
• Magnesium: Supports relaxation and mitigates anxiety.
• Zinc: Rebalances immune and liver function.
• L-Glutamine and L-Theanine: Reduce alcohol and sugar cravings by calming the nervous system.
• N-Acetylcysteine (NAC): Rebuilds antioxidant defenses and decreases cravings through glutamate balance.

Herbs like milk thistle, turmeric, and dandelion support liver detoxification; valerian and ashwagandha help sleep and stress; adaptogens like rhodiola deliver energy and cognitive focus. Scheller’s approach mirrors naturopathic medicine (as seen in Mark Hyman’s The UltraMind Solution) but tailored to alcohol recovery. She insists these tools are supportive—not substitutes—for nutrition and community.

Lifestyle Foundations

Scheller also emphasizes movement, meditation, and sleep hygiene. Exercise raises endorphins and regulates blood sugar, often replicating the dopamine high alcohol once provided. Meditation and mindfulness calm cortisol and train awareness to notice cravings. Consistent sleep, free from alcohol’s sedative interference, restores brain repair cycles. Together, these habits rebalance emotional circuitry and stabilize hormones—solidifying sobriety not just chemically but behaviorally.

Nutrition fuels the body; mindfulness fuels the mind. These two together rebuild the self that alcohol tried to erode.

In the final chapters, Scheller explores the emotional and social layers of sobriety. Healing biochemistry is only half the battle—healing community is the other. Isolation, shame, and fear often fuel drinking; connection and belonging undo it. She invokes the African proverb, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Rebuilding Social Circles

Scheller encourages readers to find sober or sober-curious allies through groups like her Functional Sobriety Network, Alcoholics Anonymous, and women-focused programs such as She Recovers. These communities replace drinking buddies with accountability partners, transforming recovery into shared growth. She also advocates “social media detox”—unfollowing alcohol-glamorizing accounts and curating feeds with health, wellness, and sobriety inspiration.

Creating Boundaries and Conversations

Handling questions like “Why aren’t you drinking?” becomes easier with prepared responses: “I feel better without it,” or “It’s not serving my life anymore.” These affirm gentle authority without self-disclosure. Building boundaries in relationships ensures psychological safety during early recovery. Scheller’s emphasis on communication reframes sobriety as a confident choice, not a confession.

Belonging Without the Bottle

Ultimately, community provides the emotional nutrient that food alone can’t—belonging. Sobriety flourishes when connection replaces consumption. Scheller closes her book urging readers to integrate psychological, physical, and social healing. You eat better, feel better, and live better when you’re surrounded by others who do the same. “You are not alone in this,” she assures. “Your future self is waiting on the other side.”