Having a hangover is something most people have had to deal with from time to time. They can cause intense (or dull) throbbing pain and can even make you puke.
You might not feel very well after a wild night out on the town! Yeehaw!
The way to eliminate them all together is to either not drink at all or to cut yourself off from having more drinks at some point. That’s sometimes hard to do when you’re out with your buds and having a good old time though. However, its really the only way to prevent one.
You could help prevent some of the bad effects by drinking lots of water while you’re drinking booze. But that’s really hard to do! Its really not sensible to try and squeeze both liquids in your tummy at the same time! (Too much sloshing around!)
People who work really hard at their jobs want some downtime to relax! That's totally understandable! The best choice is not to drink too much alcohol in the first place but if you need help recovering from being super-intoxicated, here are some tips and remedies for your hangover!
Hangover Remedies and Tips
1) First things First - Water is very important, but if you’ve got a throbbing headache, your best bet (first thing) is to get down some Gatorade. Alcohol depletes your electrolytes and you must restore them. Any sports drink is fine. Water will most likely only make you feel 'tipsy' again, and won't do much for a banging hangover.
2) Kill the Pain - The other first thing you should reach for an NSAID. Advil (Ibuprofen) or Aleve (Naproxen) These pain relievers will help dull your headache. Take at least 3 or 4 Advil Liquid gel caps or 2 Aleve gel caps.
3) Raw Eggs - Some people swear by swallowing/eating a raw egg, either by itself or with a glass of tomato juice. The protein in the egg helps settle your tummy. This is especially helpful if you have puked.
4) Ice - Ice held on the throbbing pain really helps. The pain from a headache is usually located in the temples of the forehead. Remember that ice helps reduce inflammation!
5) Heat - Although ice is touted for its ability to reduce inflammation, some people swear by heat. A hot shower or a heating pad held on the back of the neck are soothing to some people, so if nothing else works for you, try it.
6) Eat Something Light - The best approach is to avoid heavy foods when you’re trying to get rid of a hangover. Slowly and carefully, try soothing foods instead like oatmeal, milk, yogurt, toast, rice, or applesauce.
7) Hair of the Dog - I don’t recommend it, but some people like to have another drink when they're hungover. I’ve never been bold enough to try it, but if you have the gumption to do it, go ahead if you're convinced it'll help!
Replenish the water in your body. Alcohol is very dehydrating. If you’ve got a hangover, you need to replenish your water supplies.
9) Take a Nap - The problem with sleeping off a night of partying is that the sleep you get is not really sleep. Most likely you passed out from drinking too much alcohol so you can’t really consider the sleep you’ve gotten as real sleep. After you wake up for a while and treat some of your symptoms, you may want to take a nap and catch up on some real sleep.
10) Take Vitamins - Alcohol robs your body of many vitamins, especially Vitamin C and Vitamin B. Emergen-C is a product that is high in both of these key vitamins. You can find it in your local WM, internet, GNC, or any superstore. Emergen C comes as a powder available in a couple of different flavors. Simply mix the powder with some water, mix and drink. It can be a real life saver!
For example, if you consume alcohol on a regular basis, your body is most probably deficient in Thiamin (B1) and Folic Acid (B9).
(Alcohol robs your body of these B vitamin’s in particular.)
If you drink alcohol, have liver problems, take large amounts of OTC's or prescription medicine's, then you might consider an increase in particular foods that have high Thiamin and Folic Acid content.
These foods include pork, pistachios, green vegetables, lean ham, potatoes, corn, whole grain cereals, and white rice also.
#12) Chewable Vitamin C - Eat on Vitamin C Chewable Tabs or Gummie C Vitamin in-between rounds next time you drink. The extra vitamins help replenish the Vitamin C you lose when you drink. If you're a smoker too, this may be especially helpful.
#12) Next Time You Drink - Stick with alcohol that's clear, like Vodka or Gin. Dark liquors and dark beers have extra congeners in them. Alcohol that's in booze other than ethanol, are commonly referred to as congeners.
A distiller tries to isolate the good alcohol, (or ethanol), from the impurities, which include congeners. This kind of alcohol is contained in the soupy fermented material that's being distilled.
However, the studies that have been done on this subject are far from conclusive. The most recent view is that dehydration is responsible for a hangover. Drinking equal amounts of identical-proof vodka and bourbon will get you just as drunk, and will make you equally hungover the next morning.
Having a hangover is no happy occasion. Alcohol in large quantities can age you more than any other one thing, so consume it in moderate amounts. (Its also very fattening and can make you gain enormous amounts of weight if you're not careful!)
It’s still advisable to not drink so much alcohol that you get one in the first place! For those few times that you do over indulge and for those die hard party goers, its nice to know you have some help getting over the pain of it all!