Next, Dr. Wagner recommends chugging water throughout a night of drinking, stating a one drink to one glass of water ratio is best to avoiding hangover. He explains that alcohol is a diuretic, contributing to dehydration, which can cause symptoms of hangover.
Drinking lots of water will do nothing to cure a hangover, scientists have found. Despite being perceived as one of the best ways to end the misery of the morning after the night before, researchers have now claimed to confirm that all attempts to rehydrate the body do nothing to stop the effects of a hangover.
Drink Plenty of Water Beforehand
Alcohol, being the diuretic it is, also effectively strips your body of electrolytes, making your potential hangover worse than it would have been had you stayed on top of your hydration game. So, be sure to pre-game with plenty of water beforehand.
Schlosser. “Staying hydrated can drastically reduce these negative effects and decrease hangovers.” To be safe, Cosmopolitan suggests drinking a glass or two of water before bed, then refilling it so you have something to gulp down in the morning when your throat feels like sandpaper.
Drink Lots of Water to Replenish Lost Fluids
“It does this by suppressing certain hormones that help the body hold on to fluid, and therefore you are losing fluids by urinating.” The Cleveland Clinic notes you can lose up to a quart of urine in the hours after you've had four alcoholic drinks.
Water is the ideal hydration choice because it moves quickly though your digestive system and into your tissues. Stay hydrated by sipping small amounts of water throughout the day; avoid chugging down fluids right before exercising to avoid stomach discomfort and bloating.
Eating a nutritious meal before drinking alcohol can help you avoid a hangover or getting too drunk. Foods high in protein and healthy fats, like yogurt and salmon, can help slow alcohol absorption. Avocados and bananas also contain plenty of potassium, which you might lose after drinking.
The half-life of alcohol is four to five hours. This means that's how long it takes for your system to eliminate half of it. However, it takes around five half-lives to get entirely rid of the alcohol in your body. Therefore, it takes your body approximately 25 hours to completely metabolize the alcohol.
"It won't cure your hangover, but will help to reduce the dehydration that alcohol leaves you with – and therefore, may reduce the severity of your hangover the next day,” says Dr Sturnham.
But a study by the British Medical Journal found that vodka is actually the least likely drink to give you a hangover: it's so pure that it contains virtually no congeners. Mixing vodka with soda or fruit juice is ideal, as sugary soft drinks can contribute to a headache the morning after the night before.
Choosing types of alcohol with fewer congeners—like beer, vodka and wine—might reduce your hangover symptoms compared to alcohols with higher congeners—like brandy, whiskey and rum.
The alcohol you drink is broken by your liver enzymes into acetaldehyde, a toxin that your body needs to get rid of quickly. The liver enzymes that break down the alcohol are more effective in some people than others. For people who get hangovers, which means most of us, these enzymes are not as effective.
“It is true to say that your body takes longer to recover from everything after your mid-twenties partly due to inflammation and chronic diseases which your immune system and liver are fighting.
A genetic variation that affects the way alcohol is metabolized may make some people flush, sweat or become ill after drinking even a small amount of alcohol. Factors that may make a hangover more likely or severe include: Drinking on an empty stomach.
No food can erase the effects of a night of drinking alcohol, but the best hangover foods are hydrating and anti-inflammatory. Rest helps, too. Try to avoid greasy foods, sugar, and caffeine which can make your symptoms worse. Instead, stick to water and foods like bananas and crackers.
While all beverages restored hydration status equally, the researchers found that milk may be more effective than water or sports drinks at maintaining normal hydration status after exercise, likely due to milk's electrolyte content and energy density.
But for those hoping to stay optimally hydrated, a slow-and-steady approach to water consumption and coupling water with a little food is a more effective method than knocking back full glasses of H2O between meals. “Water is good for you, but you can drown in it too,” Nieman says.
And while there is no cure for hangovers, Hydralyte can help relieve dehydration associated with drinking. Late nights can mean long mornings. We know what it's like when you need to be “on” the next day but you aren't feeling your best from the night before.