Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol can cause a wide range of health problems. Sound or light sensitivity, dizziness, nausea, headache, and fatigue are all signs of a hangover. When you take a drink, alcohol reaches your blood circulation and is metabolized by your digestive system, which begins in the stomach and ends in the liver. It’s called alcohol metabolism the moment your body breaks it down.
Acetaldehyde, a result of said metabolism, is a harmful byproduct that your body strives to get rid of. Hangover symptoms can often depend on how quickly your body metabolizes acetaldehyde and how quickly it can eliminate. Please take note that acetaldehyde isn’t broken down as well by some individuals as it is by others.
Despite the abundance of “hangover treatments,” such as rubbing your armpit with lemon before consuming alcohol or drinking pickle juice, a few of these claims have been scientifically proven.
Avoid Dehydration by Drinking Water
Your drink contains alcohol, which works as a diuretic, causing you to pee more frequently. Dehydration is among the primary causes of hangovers.
In other words, when you start waking up in the morning’s early hours with a thirst that feels like you came from the desert, you know you’ve had a few too many drinks. Your body needs to maintain a healthy balance between water intake and water excretion, and alcohol often disrupts that balance.
Make sure to keep hydrated during the day if you have plans on drinking later in the evening. Moreover, try to hydrate as often as possible if you get a hangover the moment you wake up. Every tiny bit helps, even if it’s just a cup or two.
Take Your Vitamins
If you have the all-clear to drink, it would be a good idea to stock up on critical nutrients before you do so to reduce the hangover symptoms the day after. When you drink alcohol, your body loses many minerals, proteins, enzymes, fatty acids, amino acids, and vitamins. A deficiency in certain minerals and vitamins might worsen the symptoms or extend the time to recover from alcohol hangovers.
Magnesium (Mg) is famously known as “the kingpin” of vitamins, decreasing after alcohol consumption. You may have more severe hangovers due to a gradual loss of this mineral due to age and heavy alcohol use, affecting your overall well-being. A daily dosage of liquid picometer magnesium, milk thistle, and vitamin C is recommended for habitual drinkers to keep their livers functioning optimally.
Eat a Healthy Breakfast
Among the most popular ways to get rid of a hangover is having a substantial breakfast. To keep your blood sugar levels in check, eat a healthy breakfast first thing in the morning. Reduced sugar levels are frequently linked to a hangover, even if they aren’t the direct reason. Additionally, it can also cause some of the symptoms of a hangover, including weakness, exhaustion, and nausea.
Maintaining sufficient blood sugar levels has been shown to counteract some of the adverse effects of excessive alcohol use, including acid accumulation in your bloodstream.
Excessive alcohol consumption can produce metabolic acidosis, defined by a rise in blood acidity, often due to an imbalance in your blood compounds. Symptoms including vomiting, nausea, and exhaustion have been linked to it.
Having a nutritious breakfast can help replenish essential nutrients that you lost due to drinking too much alcohol the night before, besides helping reduce hangover symptoms.
Despite the lack of proof that low blood sugar causes hangovers, having a good, well-balanced, and substantial meal the morning after a heavy drinking night may help alleviate the effects of a hangover.
Use Ginger for Nausea Relief
A hangover’s primary symptom is an upset stomach, and physicians and dietitians believe that ginger is among the most acceptable natural therapies for relieving this discomfort.
As a digestive aid, ginger can help soothe upset stomachs. Stomach lining irritation due to alcohol often results in hangover nausea.
Several studies have shown that ginger’s chemical components can help alleviate stomach discomfort and improve digestive function. A 60% reduction in vomiting and an 80% reduction in weariness were observed in cancer patients, according to a meta-analysis reported in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics in December of 2019.
People can enjoy this superfood in various ways. You can try making ginger tea or adding fresh ginger to a milkshake to help ease a rumbling tummy.
If you’ve had a few too many drinks, there are scientifically proven techniques to avoid the uncomfortable after-effects. Keeping hydrated, getting enough rest, having a healthy breakfast, and taking vitamins can all help alleviate the effects of a hangover. You may also avoid a hangover by drinking responsibly and opting for beverages that have lower congener content.