It's the morning after and your world is not a happy place.
You're feeling sick, dehydrated, you hate yourself for behaving like an idiot, you look like the devil and somehow there's no money left in your wallet.
Will you ever recover?
The answer is YES and we'll tell you how.
Dehydration
If you didn't have the foresight to drink water before you went to bed make sure you down a few pints now.
Experts suggest that about 200ml of water is needed to effectively counteract every 30ml of alcohol you drink.
If your body is not hydrated it will take water from wherever it can, including the cells of the brain. Your brain can't feel pain so as those cells start to shrink due to water loss, the pain-sensitive filaments connecting the outer cell membranes to the inside of your skull become stretched which results in a headache. The more dehydrated you are the worse your headache will be.
Avoid coffee
It might seem to dull the pain but it'll only be temporary. Coffee will also dehydrate you even further which means a killer headache will be coming your way. Avoid at all costs.
Hair of the dog
It might make you feel a bit better but all you're doing is prolonging the inevitable. Your liver processes the toxins in a certain order and ethanol, or alcohol, is first on it's hit list. Once this has been broken down your liver starts on the methanol which releases formic acid into your system and makes you feel ill. By having a drink the following morning your liver will stop processing the methanol and revert back to the alcohol which is why, in the short term it'll make you feel a bit better. But that methanol has to be processed at some point so when that hangover finally hits it won't be fun.
Painkillers
If you're going down this route don't mix it with hair of the dog. Avoid any pain relief made from Tylenol as this is bad news for you and your liver and can be very dangerous. A couple of ibuprofen might make you feel a bit better especially if you wash them down with a bit more water.
Fresh fruit and fruit juices
The fructose in fruit is good for burning up any alcohol still in your stomach although the acidity won't be easy to cope with.
Mixing your drinks
By mixing your drinks you are increasing the numbers of toxins and additives going into your system. As the toxic levels increase your system, especially your liver, struggles to cope with the poisons. Drinking water will help your liver do the job of flushing out the toxins otherwise your hangover is going to be a whole lot worse the next day.
Food glorious food
Although food doesn't absorb alcohol it increases your metabolism which increases the speed at which your body processes alcohol.
Eating before, during or after drinking is a good thing.
Having a hearty breakfast will definitely help - you need proteins and amino acids so get a fry up on the go.
Vitamins
Drinking in excess drains you of Vitamin A, B (particularly B6), and C. Popping a multivitamin or two will help to get you back on the straight and narrow.
