Jane DoeThere is only one real cure for the hangover: don’t drink too much. But where’s the fun in that? You don’t work hard without the lure of playing harder at the end of the week. When the holiday season comes around, there are even more excuses to indulge far too much. So in the interest of a happy new year, you are recommended to try these tips and tricks out in staggered and phased Operation Hangover Elimination before the big one.
1. Water/Sprite
Note: Remember not to mix with vodka. Pic source
Many make the mistake of waiting till the next day when you wake up with a hangover to drink water. This isn’t advisable. What you need to do is drink plenty of water while you’re indulging. Switch it up – after every glass of the good stuff, have water. This will minimise dehydration, making you less likely to curl up and cry like a baby the next day. Top that strategic consumption of water with chugging a litre before going to sleep. You will, inevitably, wake up before dawn. This is usually your body’s way of letting you know that your liver is about to get some rest after all that metabolising. Use that wake-up call to chug more water.
The next day, until you feel better, chug Sprite. Not coke, mind you – Sprite, with its fizz, sugar and lack of caffeine is what you need. It apparently helps your body break down aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), the little demon that gives you the hangover.
2. Pretzels and Bananas
I don’t think this counts. Pic source
Potassium and salt – you need both, with some carbohydrates, to help your liver deal with the job you gave it the evening before. Potassium and salt are electrolytes that will help you rehydrate. It’s an odd snack, but once you’ve Sprited up, this is your next go-to.
3. Green Tea
To be used judiciously. Pic source
This comes after the pretzels and bananas. Herbal teas, if you have them first because they sound healthy, can actually delay the process of getting over your hangover. Green tea (or white tea) is supposed to be good for your liver, so you need to have this once you feel the death grip of the hangover loosening a bit.
4. Coffee
Do not have coffee first thing in the morning to try to sober up. Well, if you must have it because you still feel drunk, go ahead – it gives you an energy boost, as all caffiends (caffeine fiends) know. But chase it with an aspirin, and sprite. If you’re hungover in the morning, not still drunk, wait till early evening to have coffee. That is the time when your body really needs a break, but you still have work to do. It will give you an adrenaline boost, and hopefully, by then, you’re hydrated enough that the dehydrating effects don’t matter so much.
5. Sleep and greasy food
Think of it this way. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Pic source
As soon as you possibly can, catch a nap. When you wake up, you will feel slightly better. Use that window to eat something greasy and carb-heavy, possibly with an egg, and it will give your stomach something to do other than nauseate you horribly. Even a twenty-minute afternoon nap can help with this.
Of course, the best way to deal with a hangover is to not get one in the first place. If you know your limits, stick to them. Remember, when a row of six flaming shots of vodka seems like a brilliant idea, it’s really time to go home.
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