January 2009
Help for a hangover
Illustration by Jason Ford
Let's get the obvious out of the way: The best hangover cure is to avoid alcohol in the first place. But for those who end
up overcelebrating this New Year's Eve, here are the realities behind common "cures."
Drink the next day
Hangovers are triggered when the blood-alcohol level begins to drop a few hours after you finish drinking. Symptoms peak when the level returns to zero. The hair-of-the-dog approach, named for the medieval practice of treating bite wounds with the fur of the offending dog, pumps the level back up.
Does it work?
Only temporarily. The same or worse pain awaits down the road when the new alcohol leaves your system.
Have a grease-fest
Greasy food eaten before bed or the next day, the hangover cure argument goes, soaks up alcohol.
Does it work?
Only if you eat before drinking. When the body has a meal to digest, especially a fatty one, alcohol enters the bloodstream more slowly and has less chance to rise to levels that leave you miserable.
Try a hangover potion
Sold online, in stores, and even in bars, those products claim to soak up the toxic byproducts of alcohol or to help your body fight alcohol's bad effects. They usually include activated carbon or a mix of vitamins and herbs, and they have creative names: Chaser, Drinkin' Mate, NoHang, and so on.
Do they work?
It's hard to say because there's been very little independent research on them. One clinical trial of 35 people funded by Chaser's maker found that Chaser, which lists "activated calcium carbonate and charcoal" as ingredients, was better than a placebo at improving 17 hangover symptoms. But the study wasn't published.
| Theory |
Hangovers are triggered when the blood-alcohol level begins to drop a few hours after you finish drinking. Symptoms peak when the level returns to zero. The hair-of-the-dog approach, named for the medieval practice of treating bite wounds with the fur of the offending dog, pumps the level back up.
Does it work?
Only temporarily. The same or worse pain awaits down the road when the new alcohol leaves your system.
| Theory |
Greasy food eaten before bed or the next day, the hangover cure argument goes, soaks up alcohol.
Does it work?
Only if you eat before drinking. When the body has a meal to digest, especially a fatty one, alcohol enters the bloodstream more slowly and has less chance to rise to levels that leave you miserable.
| Theory |
Sold online, in stores, and even in bars, those products claim to soak up the toxic byproducts of alcohol or to help your body fight alcohol's bad effects. They usually include activated carbon or a mix of vitamins and herbs, and they have creative names: Chaser, Drinkin' Mate, NoHang, and so on.
Do they work?
It's hard to say because there's been very little independent research on them. One clinical trial of 35 people funded by Chaser's maker found that Chaser, which lists "activated calcium carbonate and charcoal" as ingredients, was better than a placebo at improving 17 hangover symptoms. But the study wasn't published.
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WHAT REALLY HELPS |
