We have all been there, a night out, a little too many drinks, and we woke up, regretting that “one more” with a pounding headache. Yep, the dreaded hangover. The older we get, the more severe the hangover. But before we dig into how to get rid of a hangover, let’s first dig into what exactly a hangover is.

What is a Hangover?

A hangover is what you experience if you overindulge in alcohol consumption. Some common symptoms associated with hangovers include nausea, vomiting, headache, fatigue, and the desperate need for water, lots of it.

One thing to note is that hangover symptoms can and will vary depending on the person. In fact, 27% of Americans say they have never even experienced a hangover. First, jealous. Second, what is the secret? Again, it varies depending on the person and what alcohol is consumed, as each type can affect each person differently.

I’m Hungover, But Why?

Numerous factors can affect your hangover. We all know that how much you drink will affect it. The more you drink, the more likely you will be hungover the next day. Science.

But there are other factors. Alcohol can be not too kind to the body when consumed. It can cause dehydration, which will cause fatigue, headaches, dizziness, and, of course, thirst. It can also cause low blood sugar, contributing to the above symptoms. Sometimes, how alcohol is broken down in your body can cause inflammation and gastrointestinal irritation. So that explains the stomach aches and nausea. It also can wreak havoc on your sleep schedule. Yes, you may fall asleep easily, but your sleep will not be good, contributing to your hangover and causing a lack of focus the next day. Sounds brutal, right? So why do we do it? We all have our reasons, but if you genuinely feel you have a problem, I suggest you seek help.

Hangover Prevention

Well, the first hangover prevention is easy; don’t drink alcohol. But since you are here to read an article about how to get rid of a hangover, let’s table that suggestion for now.

Here are some pointers to try to avoid a hangover:

Avoid Cigarettes

Yes, we all know cigarettes are bad for you, but many people find their way to them while drinking. Don’t. It is not known for sure why cigarettes can make your hangover worse. It could be you drink more when smoking, or some research has shown that the chemicals in cigarettes may heighten the effects of alcohol.

Avoid Dark Liquor

We know all people are different, but if you find yourself getting wicked hangovers, often examine what you are drinking. If you are consuming bourbon, rum, or even red wine, that could be what is causing it. These liquors have a high concentration of congeners, which are harder to metabolize by the body and could worsen your hangover. So if you must, maybe switch to vodka or white wine and see if that helps out your hangover.

Load Up On Protein

The reason for this is that if the stomach is busy digesting protein-heavy foods. Even if it is not protein, make sure that you eat something. You have heard of people eating lots of bread before or while drinking to soak up the alcohol. This is not a myth, as the food will absorb and dilute the alcohol. This will slow down the opening of the pyloric valve, which allows the stomach’s contents to pass into the small intestine, where most of the alcohol that you consume is absorbed into your blood.

Avoid The Bubbles

Seltzers, champagne, and anything with carbonation can increase your likelihood of getting a bad hangover. This is due to the gas within them as it reaches your small intestine faster, which means it reaches your bloodstream faster.

Hydration Is Key

Have you found that you need to pee a lot when you drink? This is not all alcohol that you are getting rid of. This is water that your body and, most importantly, your brain need to function. When you drink, your brain loses much of this water and dehydrates. Hydration goes a long way to hangover prevention.

The “Myth” Of “Hair Of The Dog”

We have all been there wild hangover, and we think it can’t get worse, so we have a drink, and it subsides. Magic right? Well, not really. All you are doing is masking the hangover. I would not recommend this approach as, again, this delays the hangover that you will have once you stop drinking. But this can also start to lead to a dependency on alcohol.

How to Get Rid of Hangover

Well, we wish that there was some magic solution that you could do for a 100% hangover cure all the time forever, but sadly, there is not. So the best we can do is arm you with the education around why they happen and give you some pointers to help get rid of a hangover faster:

Drink Fluids, Lots Of Them

We covered this, but it needs repeating, your body needs water, and alcohol depletes your body’s water supply. Refill it. We recommend Liquid I.V. mixed with 12 ounces of water before you start drinking or when you stop. Then drink water or anything with electrolytes in it throughout the day.

Carb Load

Again, help your body work the alcohol out of your system and get some carbs in there to soak it up.

Pain Relief

If you have a pounding headache, take aspirin or ibuprofen, but do not take Tylenol. It contains acetaminophen, which, combined with alcohol, is brutal to your liver.

Vitamin Load

Studies have shown that specific B vitamins and Zinc help contribute to less severe hangovers and could help you kick them faster.

Again, there are no hangover cures; you can’t stop them; you can only hope to contain them.

See you at happy hour, the first round of waters is on me.