Hangovers occur because alcohol makes you pee more, and this in turn leads to dehydration. This is the cause for many symptoms of a hangover.
According to the NHS Choices website, hangover cures are generally a myth, but there are things you can do to ease any discomfort.
The health body states: “Dealing with a hangover involves rehydrating the body to help it deal with the painful symptoms.
“The best time to rehydrate is before gong to sleep after a drinking session.”
While painkillers can help with headaches and muscle cramps, eating bouillon soup could help ease a fragile stomach.
The soup is a thin vegetable-based broth, which the NHS advises is a good source of vitamins and minerals, which can top up depleted resources.
Other foods and drinks have been found to help get rid of a headache and nausea.
Asparagus
Asparagus has been proven to be a good food to break down alcohol in the body. In a 2009 study in the Journal of Food Science, published by the Institute of Food Technologists, scientists discovered amino acids found in asparagus boosted the speed of cells that worked to break down alcohol inside the body.
Ginger
Ginger has been found to hold many health benefits as it contains magnesium, zinc, and chromium, which can help prevent chills, fevers and excessive sweating. Medical Daily reported it can also be ingested to reduce pain and inflammation, which makes sipping on ginger tea a potential option for beating your hangover.
Banana
Bananas are brimming with potassium, a mineral lost by frequent urination when you drink. They are also one of the best natural sources of vitamin B6, which in a study printed in the journal Annals of Nutrition showed can reduce hangover symptoms by as much as 50 per cent.
Egg
Eggs contain large amounts of cysteine, a substance which has also been found to break down hangovers, according to Health How Stuff Works.
Coconut water
In 2010, an article in Time pointed out that coconut water “contains the same five electrolytes found in human blood”. Anti-oxidants precent and repair damage to the body, and if you are low on anti-oxidants you feel worse after a night of drinking.
Tomato juice
Researchers on the dime of beverage companies Asahi and Kagome discovered that it can help alleviate hangover symptoms.
According to the study, subjects were examined drinking 100ml of alcohol followed by 480ml of tomato juice. They then repeated the experiment, but this time with 480ml of water, on the same people.
They found that tomato juice cause blood alcohol levels to become three times lower than with water. And the test subjects also become completely sober minutes faster with the tomato juice then the water.
Drinking alcohol every day for a month is unlikely to leave your body unharmed. There are four short-term effects.
It is well-known that drinking too much for years on end can cause brain damage, liver cancer and alcohol hepatitis.
But alcohol abuse can impact your health much sooner than that – and it’s more serious than a hangover.
“The body is more than equipped to cope with the odd binge or moderate drinking,” said Rob Hobson, nutritional director at Healthspan and co-author of The Detox Kitchen Bible.
“But if you have a long period of consistently drinking large quantities of alcohol then this can impact on your physical health, general wellness and mental health.”
Here are four ways alcohol can impact your health if you overdo it.
