SUPPLIES
- Water
- Fruit juice
- Ginger
- Bland foods
- Vitamin B-12
- Feverfew capsules
Overview
Hangovers occur as a result of too much alcohol in your system. The liquor can expand the blood vessels in your head (creating headaches), upset your stomach (causing nausea and vomiting), create considerable amounts of urine (leading to dehydration) and reduce the quality of your sleep (leading to exhaustion). There are natural cures to all of these conditions, or at least ways of mitigating the symptoms until your body recovers normally. You can take them once the hangover hits you, but it's better to prepare and have a plan before you start drinking.
Step 1
Drink plenty of water. It will mitigate the alcohol's dehydrating properties and reduce the overall effect of the hangover. If possible, begin to drink water before the hangover arrives: as soon as you are done consuming alcohol up until the point you go to sleep.
Step 2
Drink fruit juice. It helps stem the effects of dehydration just like water does. In addition, the fructose in fruit juice will aid your body in processing the alcohol and get you over the hangover more quickly.
Step 3
Take ginger for your upset stomach. It will help soothe the lining of your stomach, reducing both the nausea and the urge to vomit. Ginger can be found in capsule form, or you can take it in ginger tea.
Step 4
Use feverfew capsules for a headache. This is a medicinal herb that can be used to prevent the blood vessels in your head from expanding. In addition, it works well for calming an upset stomach. You can also treat a headache by taking over-the-counter medications such as aspirin or Tylenol.
Step 5
Eat bland foods such as soda crackers or chicken broth. They will restore your blood sugar levels (which alcohol lowers) and calm your stomach down as well. Stay away from spicy foods and avoid anything with caffeine in it. The spices will agitate your stomach, and caffeine is a diuretic, which will further dehydrate you.
Step 6
Dissolve a vitamin B-12 capsule under your tongue. Do this after you finish drinking, again before you go to bed, and one more time when you wake up in the morning. The vitamin will help stem the sense of exhaustion.
TIPS AND WARNINGS
- TIP : The best cure for a hangover is prevention. Monitor your alcoholic intake while you are drinking, eat plenty of foods before and during your drinking, don't mix drinks and try to favor drinks with noncarbonated mixers (such as fruit juice) rather than carbonated mixers like cola or soda water.
- WARNING : Refrain from drinking more alcohol to cure a hangover. The "hair of the dog" myth is just that--a myth--and it usually makes the problem worse.
