Hangover cure: Busting eight common myths and ways to fix it

Representational image. (Photo via Unsplash)

Woken up feeling like Mike Tyson has knocked you out? Hangovers are horrible. And the worst part is the reality that hangovers don’t even require a big night of heavy drinking. All you need are a couple of drinks in quick succession on a stomach not lined with enough food. The morning-after price can include a pounding headache, fatigue, queasy stomach and a weakened immune system. “A hangover is a dehydrated body trying to fix itself overnight after a bout of heavy drinking. It’s trying to clear up the alcohol in the bloodstream while there is no nutrition in the body. Your senses are heightened as you are in a flight or fight mode,” says Feruzan Bilimoria, head of advocacy education at Third Eye Distillery, the company behind Stranger & Sons, Svami, Plantation India and Short Story Spirits.

Hangovers are not due to the alcohol content itself. It’s a result of too much alcohol into the system coupled with no food and less water. (Photo via Unsplash)

Little wonder then that "hangover cure" tends to be the No. 1 on Google search on New Year's Day as people go to great lengths to find a "quick" cure. Interestingly, if a man and woman drink the same amount of alcohol, the woman is more likely to feel the effects. That’s because men have a higher percentage of water in their bodies, which helps dilute the alcohol they drink. When women drink the same amount, more alcohol builds up in the bloodstream. So, ladies go easy on the free drinks on Ladies' Night.

That said, let’s break down eight common hangover-cure myths, why they don't really work and what you should do instead:

Myth #1: Have a drink the morning after
This "hair of the dog" trick is probably the most commonly suggested cure by people who share your hangover distress. Interestingly the term “hair of the dog that bit you” was an old folk remedy for rabies where one would place hair from the dog that bit someone into the wound. Sadly, it didn’t work for those bitten by a rabid dog and it won’t help you either. “It’s the best new year’s joke! Having a Manhattan at breakfast will only delay the inevitable misery. The truth is that more alcohol in the morning will only further dehydrate you,” cautions mixologist and co-founder of Sidecar and Cocktails and Dreams. He suggests eating a light meal before the party (preferably, something fried) and pacing your drinks sensibly.

Myth #2: Eat bread or a greasy meal after heavy drinking
This is wrong on two counts, believes Prajval Vichare, bartender at Akina, Mumbai. “Eating at bedtime (after you're already drunk) is of no help. And no, bread doesn’t act like sponge and absorb all that excess alcohol in your system. Moreover, eating massive portions right before bed can mess with your sleep, so that's never a good idea. Food has to be in your stomach before Happy Hour as it can slow down how fast your body absorbs alcohol.” Mumbai-based nutritionist & lifestyle educator Karishma Chawla suggests eating something before your first martini. “A light meal of salad or a soup will help you feel satiated and prevent over-drinking. You can add some source of protein, such as eggs, too.” Bilimoria endorses a banana and peanut butter milkshake to get through the misery of a hangover the next day. Eggs and bacon work just as fine.

Myth #3: Pop a pain reliever before bed
This is quite useless as most pain medicines take 30 minutes to kick in and the effects (if any) will wear off well before you wake up in the morning. Moreover, the pills can make acid reflux worse, and the combination of alcohol and painkiller could hurt your liver. “Remember 70-80 per cent of your immune system lives in your gut and painkillers alter the gut lining. Instead treat food as medicine. Ensure you eat a wholesome breakfast, comprising cereal along with some egg whites or whey isolate supplement (check on your level of tolerance). Hydrate through the entire day with plain or infused water, vegetable juices and limewater,” suggests Chawla.

Myth #4: Wine is the gentlest choice
That depends on how much wine you drink, says Yangdup Lama, mixologist and co-founder of Sidecar. “Though wine and beers have less alcohol (in comparison to hard drinks), too many too soon will anyway give you a hangover. A glass of wine is the same as a 30 ml of whisky diluted with soda. But if you drink a bottle of wine, it’s not the same. So, ultimately hangovers are not due to the alcohol content in itself, it’s a result of too much alcohol into your system coupled with no food and less water. Sometimes, you could be hung over with just one drink, which could be the result of bad quality alcohol that your body couldn’t process,” says Lama. If you're worried about how you'll feel in the morning, the gentlest choices are beer and wine (in moderation).

Starting the next morning with limewater helps with a hangover. (Photo via Unsplash)

Myth #5: Coffee is the cure
Coffee drinkers tend to believe that java is the elixir of life. But, when it comes to hangovers, coffee isn't a cure at all. “Caffeine in coffee may temporarily help reduce fatigue, but it will not cure the hangover. It will, in fact, narrow your blood vessels and may make your hangover worse. After a night of drunkenness, it's best to sip water, juices and sports drinks to counter dehydration and replace lost electrolytes, especially if you threw up,” says nutritionist Radhika Shah.

Myth #6: Sleep off the hangover
If only things were that simple. Restful restorative sleep and drinking don’t mix. Alcohol can totally mess with your sleep cycle and a good eight hours of sleep could actually feel like two. While dragging yourself out of bed may feel like the last thing you want to do, getting up and moving are the best things to do. “Exercise releases endorphins, the body’s natural painkiller, and increases your circulation, which helps oxygen get to your cells and improve your mood. So, get up and walk, stretch and hydrate,” says Arvind Singh, a Mumbai-based fitness trainer.

Hydrating with infused water helps get over a hangover quicker. (Photo via Unsplash)

Myth #7: Expensive liquor will not give a hangover
Sure, lower-quality wine and liquor may contain more impurities than pricier alcohol, and those ingredients can contribute to hangovers. But expensive booze is still alcoholic, and remember too much alcohol itself, along with many components that are added to it, is toxic. Unless the high cost deters you from refilling your glass, the classy stuff can still mess with your body pretty badly.

Myth #8: Just throw up
Vomiting to cure your hangover is useless, not to mention just a sad way to end the night. That’s because when you vomit you are not throwing out the alcohol from your stomach. Your body has already filtered the alcohol into your bloodstream. Throwing up is often a sign that you're already suffering from alcohol's toxic effects. And if you've heard that making yourself throw up can work wonders, don't: vomiting can dehydrate you, big time, so it's counterproductive, not to mention unhealthy and dangerous to force it.

The hard truth

The only proven cure for a hangover is time, besides pacing yourself and cutting back on alcohol. That may seem like a real buzzkill, but, at least, you won’t hate yourself the next morning.

Raw foods such as salads help when hung over. (Photo via Unsplash)

Tips to deal with a hangover

In case of a bad hangover, this is what you should do, according to nutritionist Karishma Chawla:

• Start the next morning with limewater to get the body back into an alkaline state.
• Consume raw foods such as like vegetable juices, salads, limewater and high fiber fruits during the first half of the day.
• Once better, move to a wholesome meal comprising of protein, fibre and other high-thermogenic foods to reduce alcohol absorption and to maintain a higher metabolism.
• Sweat it out a bit, a run or a walk will help.
• Ensure to eat all meals of the day, even if they are smaller in portions than usual.