How to Prevent and Cure a Hangover

Having fun always comes with a price-tag. When it comes to alcohol, the price-tag is a hangover. We've all been there. Pounding headache with light sensitivity and nausea accompanied by puking. Anytime I've had a hangover, I couldn't eat a thing all day without puking. While many think a hangover is a price-tag when it comes to alcohol, it doesn't have to be. 

    Hangovers are caused by a combination of dehydration, a depletion of vitamins (A,B, and C) and a toxic byproduct of alcohol metabolism. Even though they are hard to escape, some drinks do you worse than others. How brutal the hangover will be depends on the impurities on congeners (amyl alcohol, butyl alcohol, methyl alcohol, propyl alcohol, and isopropyl alcohol).

    Clear liquors such as vodka and gin are generally lower in congeners than whiskey, rum, and bourbon. Liquor that has been around for awhile (like wine) will have produced more hangover causing acetaldehyde.

How to Prevent a Hangover

• Have a meal before you drink. Load up on a low-sodium combo of carbs, protein, and fat, which will be digested slowly. Try a whole-grain pita stuffed with grilled chicken, veggies, and cheese.
• Take a Berocca vitamin supplement before your start drinking. You can purchase a bottle at the pharmacy. This gives you additional vitamin B that can help you combat a hangover.
• Skip carbonated alcoholic beverages like beer, champagne, and wine coolers. The alcohol in these are absorbed faster than in non-carbonated drinks.
• Alternate fruit juice or water in between your drinks.
• Beware of sugary alcohol. The sweet flavor will mask the alcohol, causing you to consume more alcohol than you think.
• Drink a lot of water before bed to prevent dehydration. 

Hangover Remedies

These don't promise a full recovery, but sure to make you feel better.

• Mix a drop of lemon juice, heavy cream, and powdered sugar with equal parts orange flower water, egg whites, gin, and soda.
• Energy powder found at moth health food stores also help. It's usually used to ward off a cold, but works wonders on a hangover.
• Eat a lot of greasy foods such as pizza, fries, or other fast-food. The grease helps take away your hangover.
• THC.
• Drinking a glass of alcohol.