A hangover is a group of unpleasant signs and
symptoms that can develop after drinking too much alcohol. As if feeling awful
weren't bad enough, frequent hangovers are also associated with poor
performance and conflict at work.
As a general rule, the more alcohol you
drink, the more likely you are to have a hangover the next day. But there's no
magic formula to tell you how much you can safely drink and still avoid a
hangover.
However unpleasant, most hangovers go away on
their own, though they can last up to 24 hours. If you choose to drink alcohol,
doing so responsibly can help you avoid future hangovers.
Symptoms
Hangover symptoms typically begin when your
blood alcohol drops significantly and is at or near zero. They're usually in
full effect the morning after a night of heavy drinking. Depending on what and
how much you drank, you may notice:
- Fatigue and weakness
- Thirst
- Headaches and muscle aches
- Nausea, vomiting or stomach pain
- Poor or decreased sleep
- Increased sensitivity to light and sound
- Dizziness or a sense of the room spinning
- Shakiness
- Decreased ability to concentrate
- Mood disturbances, such as depression, anxiety and irritability
- Rapid heartbeat
Causes
Hangovers are caused by drinking too much
alcohol. A single alcoholic drink is enough to trigger a hangover for some
people, while others may drink heavily and escape a hangover entirely.
Various factors may contribute to a hangover.
For example:
- Alcohol causes your body to produce more urine. In turn,
urinating more than usual can lead to dehydration — often indicated by
thirst, dizziness and lightheadedness.
- Alcohol triggers an inflammatory response from your immune system. Your
immune system may trigger certain agents that commonly produce physical
symptoms, such as an inability to concentrate, memory problems, decreased
appetite and loss of interest in usual activities.
- Alcohol irritates the lining of your stomach. Alcohol increases
the production of stomach acid and delays stomach emptying. Any of these
factors can cause abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting.
- Alcohol can cause your blood sugar to fall. If your blood sugar
dips too low, you may experience fatigue, weakness, shakiness, mood
disturbances and even seizures.
- Alcohol causes your blood vessels to expand, which can lead to
headaches.
- Alcohol can make you sleepy, but your quality of sleep will
decrease. This may leave you groggy and tired.
- Alcoholic beverages contain ingredients called congeners, which
give many types of alcoholic beverages their flavor and can contribute to
hangovers. Congeners are found in larger amounts in dark liquors, such as
brandy and whiskey, than in clear liquors, such as vodka and gin.
Remedies
For Hangover
1. Water
Drinking
water is the best way to get rid of hangover symptoms. Alcohol depletes water
from the body and you need to rehydrate your body by drinking water at regular
intervals. Also, water dilutes the impurities left in your stomach.
Aim to drink
at least eight to 10 glasses of water throughout the day. Along with water, you
can drink a few glasses of electrolyte-replenishing sports drinks.
Note: Don’t
drink caffeinated beverages, as they contribute to dehydration.
2. Lemon
Lemon can help
get rid of the after-effects of excessive drinking like queasiness, dizziness, and
sensitivity to light and sound, and muscle pain. Lemon helps rebalance the
body, by controlling the blood sugar level and altering the pH level.
- Add two teaspoons of fresh lemon juice
and one teaspoon of honey to a glass of warm water.
- Stir well and drink it down slowly.
- Do this as soon as you wake up, as
well as two or three times more throughout the day.
3. Honey
Another
excellent cure for hangover symptoms is honey. Being rich in potassium, honey
helps counteract the effects of drinking too much alcohol. In addition, honey
contains fructose, a type of sugar that helps metabolize the extra alcohol in
the body, in turn reducing hangover symptoms.
- Take three to four teaspoons of honey
at one-hour intervals until the hangover symptoms are reduced.
- You can also add one to two
tablespoons of honey to one cup of water, and drink it slowly several
times a day.
- Also, you can spread honey over a
piece of dry toast or a cracker and eat it many times during a hangover.
4. Toast
and Egg
Eating some
slices of plain toast with an egg is a good idea to get over hangover symptoms.
The carbohydrates in toast are a good source of recovery nutrients.
Plus, the
carbon in the charred part of the toast acts like a filter to help remove
the impurities from the body. The egg provides cysteine that breaks down the
alcohol in the body and reduces toxicity.
The morning
after a night of heavy drinking, have a breakfast of two or three pieces of
toast and eggs. Before eating your breakfast, do not forget to drink one to two
glasses of water.
5. Tomato
Juice
Drinking
tomato juice is another simple way to control hangover symptoms. This vegetable
juice contains fructose, a type of sugar that helps your body metabolize
alcohol more quickly. Plus, it is rich in the vitamins, minerals and enzymes
that help quickly overcome the after-effects of drinking.
- Pour a glass of fresh tomato juice or
soup.
- Mix in one tablespoon each of fresh
lemon juice and honey, along with a little cayenne pepper.
- Drink this juice once in the morning
and again in the afternoon.
6. Banana
Due to
excessive drinking, lots of potassium gets drained from your body. To help
replenish potassium as well as lost electrolytes, one simple solution is to eat
bananas. They are a very good source of potassium. Also, bananas help calm the
stomach and boost your energy level.
- Eat one or two bananas with your breakfast
after a night of heavy drinking to alleviate hangover symptoms.
- You can also opt to prepare a banana
milkshake sweetened with honey.
7. Ginger
Ginger is
another time-honored cure for hangover symptoms like nausea and vomiting. Also,
ginger helps in the digestion of alcohol, thus it soothes the stomach and
provides fast relief.
- Chew small pieces of ginger throughout
the day to get relief from a hangover. You can also have ginger tea.
- Alternatively, add 10 to 12 slices of
fresh ginger root to about four cups of water and boil it for 10 minutes.
Strain and then add the juice of one orange, half a lemon and one-half cup
of honey. Drink this while it is still warm, many times throughout the
day.
8.
Peppermint
Peppermint
is a very helpful herb to treat hangover symptoms. It aids digestion and helps
relieve tension, bloating and nausea, some of the most common symptoms of an
acute hangover. Plus, peppermint speeds up the detoxification process.
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- Simply chew some fresh peppermint
leaves throughout the day. It will relax the intestines and help you
recover quickly.
- Make a cup of peppermint tea by
pouring one cup of boiling water over one teaspoon of dried peppermint.
Cover it, let it steep for 15 minutes and then strain it. Drink one to two
cups of this herbal tea after you wake up.
- Another option is to add a few drops
of peppermint oil to a bathtub filled with warm water. Soak in this water
for 30 minutes. This warm, soothing bath will make you feel better
immediately! To soothe the headache caused by a hangover, you can simply
use a cold compress.
REMEMBER
Anyone who drinks alcohol can experience
a hangover, but some people are more susceptible to hangovers than others are.
A genetic variation that affects the way alcohol is metabolized may make some
people flush, sweat or become ill after drinking even a small amount of
alcohol.
Factors that may make a hangover more
likely or severe include:
- Drinking on an empty stomach. Having
no food in your stomach speeds the body's absorption of alcohol.
- Using other drugs, such as
nicotine, along with alcohol. Smoking combined with drinking appears
to increase the likelihood of next-day misery.
- Not sleeping well or long enough
after drinking. Some researchers believe that some hangover
symptoms are often due, at least in part, to the poor-quality and short
sleep cycle that typically follows a night of drinking.
- Having a family history of
alcoholism. Having close relatives with a history of alcoholism
may suggest an inherited problem with the way your body processes alcohol.
- Drinking darker colored alcoholic beverages. Darker colored drinks often contain a high volume of congeners the chemicals used to add color and flavor to alcohol. Congeners are more likely to produce a hangover.