Home Remedies for Hangovers

It is Friday, time to loosen up and party with your friends, let's bring out those drinks! But wait, the funny thing with us is that we know what we should be doing to avoid a hangover and yet we ignore it . It is usually the morning after, we feel like hell on earth and with no money in our wallet that we regretted behaving like an idiot last night. So, before you booze tonight, read this first.

Before you go:
Have a meal reasonable high in fats. Fats is digested more slowly and will protect your stomach from the irritating effects and slows down the absorption of alcohol. If you do not want a full meal, a glass of full cream milk or a peanut butter sandwich is just as good.

While you are drinking:
Avoid dark coloured alcohol such as red wine, port, whiskey, dark rum and brandy as they tend to cause more severe hangovers. Before you start drinking, know your limit, one alcoholic drink per hour is a good rule of thumb.

Avoid mixing your drinks with different types of alcohol. When you combine drinks, you are increasing the amount of toxins and additives going into your body which can exacerbate the effects of a hangover. As the toxic levels increase, your liver struggles to detox the poisons. Alternate your alcoholic tipples with non-frizzy drink or water helps your liver to flush out toxins and ultimately more bearable hangovers. Orange juice or any other citrus fruit juice such as pineapple with honey added is best because Vitamin C speeds up the metabolism of alcohol by the liver. Experts recommend about 200ml of water is needed to effectively counteract every 30ml of alcohol you drink. In addition, before you go to bed, remember to drink a pint of water to combat the dehydrating effects of ethanol in alcohol. You can also opt for electrolyte containing beverage such as Lucozade.

A hangover?
A hearty breakfast will definitely help nurse a hangover. Eggs and meat are rich in the amino acid, cysteine, which is thought to be good at clearing out toxins. I swear by cheese and sausage roll.

Avoid coffee, tea or cola as these are diuretics and are likely to dehydrate you even further. The ideal beverage is freshly squeezed fruit juice and it works because it replaces lost vitamins. If you cannot stomach an acidic juice, add it to banana and yogurt smoothie or try any mixed vegetable juice. Bananas are rich in the important electrolytes, magnesium and potassium, which are depleted during heavy drinking. It is also a natural antacid to relieve nausea. Fructose in juices will boost your energy levels and replace lost nutrients. It is also good to take a over the counter Vitamin B complex (B1 and B6) pill to address the imbalances and lessen the severity of hangovers.

If you are desperately searching and thinking of getting some temporary relief from pain killers, be warned that acetaminophen (active ingredient in Tylenol, Excedrin) has potential to cause irreversible harm to your liver and cause hyper toxicity. If you must, wait for an hour or longer until most of the alcohol has been eliminated.

Sleeping as much as possible is a tried and true remedy. Since you cannot perform well with a sluggish system and a sober mind, might as well go back to sleep and recharge.

One last word of caution before you party tonight. If you drink don't drive, if you drive, don't drink. Cheers!