Effective Ways to Get Over a Hangover
We’ve all been there.
After 5 days of working and grinding, it’s time to throw some caution to the wind, go out with friends, and get into some shenanigans. Aided by the liquor in your system, your inhibitions are lowered, and the dizzying of the world around you only heightens the fun.
However, following that night of some more than moderate shot taking, you wake up in the morning with the dreaded hangover. The temple-pounding headache, sensitivity to light, irritation, and exhaustion make you vow you will never drink like that again – until the next weekend rolls around.
While convention says that you just have to live the awful hangover day and start fresh the following day, there are a few ways to accelerate getting over the hangover and easing the symptoms.
1. Drink Water
Alcohol is a diuretic, meaning it increases your need to urinate, resulting in the expulsion of necessary fluids and electrolytes that are vital to your body’s normal functioning. Because of the lack of fluids in your system following a night of heavy drinking, you are more than likely to wake up completely parched.
Drinking a lot of water can both help nourish your body’s fluids and alleviate the symptoms of the hangover.
2. Drink Some More
While this may seem counterintuitive, having a drink the morning after is actually an age-old tactic of alleviating the symptoms of a hangover. Known as “hair of the dog,” this helpful remedy works because of how alcohol affects chemical production in the body.
Alcohol turns methanol in the body into formaldehyde, which is a chemical compound responsible for many hangover symptoms. Having another drink when you wake up the next morning can help stop this transition.
3. Don’t Drink Dark Colored Alcoholic Beverages
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The best way to get over a hangover may be to simply avoid alcoholic beverages that are more prone to cause more severe hangovers. Studies have found that light or clear liquors, such as vodka or gin, contain less methanol than darker alcoholic beverages such as red wine, tequila, and whiskey.
Taking the preventative measure of electing to forego drinking darker alcoholic beverages can be a massive help in mitigating the severity of a hangover the next morning.
