The Subtle Art of Avoiding a Hangover – Backed By Real Science

For most of us, a good night out includes two major ingredients: the company of people we like to hang out with and having drinks. And by drinks, we don’t mean soft drinks like Coke or Pepsi, but something with some alcohol in it.

From time to time, we tend to forget how much enough is enough. In those cases, there are two scenarios; one before we leave the bar and another, bit more challenging when we wake up in the morning.

When we are young, hangovers are not that much of an issue. But as we grow older, they tend to become more than just a morning nuance. They become so strong that they can make the entire day a living hell, not just the morning after.

Is there anything that can be done?

Well, there is a lot you can do to avoid getting a massive hangover. Everything that follows is backed by real-life science, proven effective in practice, and practiced regularly by people that sometimes forget how much is enough. Some might say there are the secrets of people that know how to enjoy drinking, drink a lot, and yet their mornings are not as brutal as expected.

Before you go out

This is a common myth that has been around for many years as dehydration is only one part of the issue. According to the Metabolism: Clinical and Experimental journal, after drinking, one of the biggest and most negative impacts on our bodies is because our antioxidant defenses can’t handle the free radicals roaming around. Since red wine, and all wine, actually has strong associated health benefits which come from drinking wine – you need to make sure that you can still enjoy without being plagued by a hangover the next day!

Free radicals are atoms that can cause harm to body cells. They play a huge role in the oxidative and the inflammation stress. To mitigate those effects, you need to increase your vitamin intake before drinking alcoholic beverages. Vitamin B is one of the most important ones as it turns the food we eat into energy. Therefore, shortly before you go out, pop a multivitamin shake, pomegranate juice, or anything that contains all sorts of vitamins.

Also, don’t go out on an empty stomach. Make sure you got a good, nutritious meal. Make sure you are full, but not bloated. Drinking on an empty stomach means that the alcohol passes instantly to the intestines and in the bloodstream.

On the other hand, drinking on a full stomach will slow down that process significantly. Meals reach with omega-3 fatty acids are considered most appropriate before you begin drinking. Omega-3 fatty acids are very helpful to the work of the liver that has an essential role in detoxing the body once you start drinking, and those free radicals start wreaking havoc in you.

Once the party begins

Pacing yourself is a must and has a lot to do with our self-control. In addition, make sure you stay hydrated. So yes, water between drinks is good and will keep you hydrated.

But Gatorade and coconut water are a way better solution than water. Both drinks are way more efficient in replenishing your electrolytes, your nutrients, as well as your fluids. Therefore, keep some next to you or at least in your car.

If you are a wine lover, you might consider drinking organic wine. The thing with organic wine is that it doesn’t contain any pesticides or preservatives, which can lead to a headache.

Furthermore, on average, European wines contain less alcohol. Many of the European wines contain 12.5 or fewer percentages of alcohol. Lower levels of alcohol translate into fewer hangover symptoms the next morning.

If you are more into stronger drinks, stick to clear liquor like gin and vodka. They contain way fewer impurities than rum and whiskey. Also, if possible, don’t mix your vodka or gin with soft drinks. The sugar in soft drinks can also lead to a massive headache the morning after.

Also, smoking cigars and drinking is never a good idea. There was a study in which 113 college students participated for eight weeks and in which they recorded their drinking, smoking habits, as well as their hangovers. The results of the study were published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. They pointed to the fact the smoking and drinking together lead to severe hangovers.

In Conclusion

The easiest way to approach this is with a piece of simple advice – drink moderately. But we all know that things in real life happen on their own, no matter our resolutions and what we’ve promised to ourselves.

For the times when we overstep the boundaries of moderate drinking, we need to stick to some basic recommendations, most of which we’ve mentioned above. That way, the morning after won’t hit as hard as it usually does after a night of heavy drinking.