Hangover - Some Myths And Truths How To Fight It

A hangover is a common condition after drinking too much alcohol. The symptoms are most pronounced 14-15 hours after the start of intake. According to researchers, this is because the accumulation in the body of products from the processing of alcohol, such as lactic acid, require more time to excrete.

Patients with a hangover often report severe headache, nausea, dizziness, irritability, thirst and fatigue. Usually when you wake up after drinking a lot of alcohol and falling asleep, the symptoms are most pronounced.

Sometimes the standard clinical picture may be supplemented by symptoms of overexertion, pallor, trembling, vomiting, pain and burning behind the sternum, gait instability and loss of appetite.

1. Which types of alcohol cause a hangover?

Products obtained from the processing of alcohol, called derivatives , are thought to increase the severity of the hangover. Gin and vodka contain a very small amount of such substances, therefore the likelihood of developing a hangover is lower. While brandy, champagne and whiskey have the potential to cause the most severe forms of hangovers, as they have a rich caliber of substances that become derivatives.

Red wine can also cause a severe hangover because it contains a large amount of tyramine . Tyramine is a substance that causes a very severe headache in the human body.

2. What therapy can be relied on?

According to many doctors, the hangover can be controlled completely on its own with the help of pure water, teas and broths within a few hours after waking up. This is true only in accidental cases of hangover.

Most doctors recommend taking paracetamol or ibuprofen for fluids, drinking fluids to control dehydration, and eating light foods rich in carbohydrates and fructose . Carbohydrates and pure fructose have been shown to relieve symptoms of nausea. It is found mostly in fruit juices and honey. Grapes are especially rich in it.

It has been proven that fruit juices help to break down alcohol and speed up hydration - rehydration, of the body.

To relieve the symptoms of nausea, it is recommended to consume toasted slices of bread and honey and take broths that contain large amounts of potassium, sodium and chlorine.

Experts have recently begun to deny the beneficial effects of aspirin before or after alcohol consumption in order to relieve the symptoms of a hangover. According to numerous studies, aspirin causes severe alcohol dependence in people who consume alcohol relatively often.

Recently, there is strong scientific evidence that the intake of vitamin C before or after consuming large amounts of alcohol helps to clear it faster from the body.

Herbalists share the beneficial effects of white willow bark , which contains natural salicylates that relieve headaches. It is taken in the form of hot tea or by chewing the bark. The symptoms of nausea in a hangover can be controlled with quality intake of Hungarian chamomile tea .

3. Some myths and truths

Two myth-related myths are especially popular. The first myth is that coffee helps to control the symptoms of a hangover, and the second - that if there is no evidence of a hangover, then alcohol has not affected the body.

Scientists deny both myths and present their justification in peer-reviewed scientific facts. Only time can lead to the disappearance of the symptoms of a hangover, when all the derivatives are processed and cleared from the body. The stimulating effect of coffee can only temporarily deceive that the body is not affected by alcohol . In these conditions, road accidents and serious injuries when working with machines often occur.

Researchers have proven that alcohol consumption affects the ability to work the next day, even if the body has no traces of its intake. They advise in case of serious work tasks the next day, to limit to a minimum the consumption of alcohol or to avoid it at all the night before.