Hangover Preventatives for Before, During, and After Drinking

If you want to totally prevent a hangover then don’t drink. However, if alcohol is going to be part of your good time, there are some scientifically proven methods that you can use before, during, and after drinking to help prevent the morning after misery.

Planning your night out before you start drinking can help you feel better the next day. Start by eating a good meal. Focus on eating foods that are high in fat and carbohydrates. A full stomach does not absorb alcohol as easily as an empty one, allowing your body to process the alcohol more easily. Fatty foods and high carbohydrate foods take longer to digest, so the effect lasts longer. By eating first, you can also decrease stomach irritation.

It is important to stay hydrated so drink water before consuming alcohol. Taking a multivitamin can also help combat the vitamin and mineral loss that the diuretic affects of alcohol can cause.

When drinking, there are some things that you can do to help prevent alcohol absorption. You should drink slowly, preferably no more than one drink an hour. This gives your body enough time to process the alcohol. Having a drink of water or a sports drink with your drink will help to keep you hydrated and allow your body more time to process the toxins.

Another thing to do is to watch what you are drinking. Mixing drinks will often cause you to feel worse the next day. Beer has the lowest amount of alcohol, but carbonation allows it to be absorbed faster. Wine is higher in alcohol, but is not carbonated, and white wine has fewer congeners than red. Cheap wines also tend to be higher in congeners than the more expensive types. Liquor has the highest amount of alcohol, and clear liquors have fewer congeners than dark ones, and again, the cheaper the liquor, the more likelihood of a hangover.

When you get home from your night out, there are some things that you can do before going bed. Take two aspirins with a full glass of water to help hydrate you and decrease hangover severity in the morning.

Make sure that to take actual aspirin, not acetaminophen, which can cause more problems for your liver.

When you wake up in the morning, you should take two more aspirins with another glass of water to help stave off a headache caused by inflammation. Taking another vitamin can help you replenish the vitamins and minerals that you loss the night before and set you on the road to recovery.

A healthy breakfast can also help. Eggs have cysteine that can break down toxins; bananas include potassium crucial to hydration, and fruit juices or sports drinks can help by replenishing sugar, salt, and electrolytes that you may have lost. Start out slowly, to avoid nausea, and avoid caffeinated beverages that will prolong your misery.

The best thing to do to prevent a hangover is not to drink at all, but if you are going to anyway then the above steps should help lessen the painful affects.

Quick Hangover Preventatives and Cures

Alcohol is a staple at most adult party’s. While the responsible drinker won’t drink themselves into a stupor, everyone is entitled to a little irresponsibility now and then (just do not drink and drive). If you do end up going overboard then you are probably going to face the inevitable hangover the next day.

The scenarios behind a hangover tend to be pretty similar – too much to drink, mixing drinks, etc. The symptoms are often the same: migraines, nausea, dry mouth, dizziness, and a general feeling of discomfort. Here is a look at how you can prevent yourself from feeling this way should there be a next time.

Never drink on an empty stomach. Eat something with greasy, fatty foods loaded with oil or butter. Others will swear by having a couple of tablespoons of olive oil before leaving the house. Remember to wash it down before going to bed with a couple of glasses of water.

Drinking water in general before bedtime will help with dehydration along with something to dull the pain.

If you need help waking up in the morning, you can try a red eye. Take some whiskey, fresh coffee, Tabasco sauce, a raw egg, pepper, and orange juice and blend it together in a blender. If you are able to choke it down, fans say that you will start feeling better within 15 minutes. If you need a faster cure, try a Black Mary. Mix coffee with tonic water, honey, and orange juice. Again, it might be a little rough to get down, but there are those that swear by its effectiveness.

Some other preventatives have to do with when you are actually out drinking. Following these rules can help keep you feeling good the next day.

First of all, avoid mixed drinks. If you prefer the harder drinks, take them straight or over ice. Avoid drinks that have colas or juices mixed in, since these will often get you drunk faster and without realizing it. This leads to more toxins needing to be flushed from your system, and a higher likelihood of a hangover the next day.

Do not mix low alcoholic drinks with highly alcoholic ones. For example, drinking both beer and hard liquor is a thing to avoid. Choose one or the other, otherwise, your body gets confused and you end up taking in more alcohol. And, the more alcohol that gets absorbed, the more likely you are to have a hangover.

Avoid dairy when you are drinking. Milk, cheeses, ice cream, and cream sauces can really upset your stomach when you mix them with alcohol. So unless you enjoy the view of your toilet bowl, stay away from them until afterwards.

Always keep in mind that while hangover “cures” can help to alleviate the symptoms of your hangover, only time and your metabolism will officially end it. So keep that in mind when you are out drinking, particularly if there is somewhere that you want to be the next day.