
How to cure a hangover: what one man found after a 10-year quest - prostoalex
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/nov/23/hangover-cure-book-shaughnessy-bishop-stall
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0898
For those curious what the 'cure' is in the article:

"His cure is relatively simple, or at least relatively simple to acquire – all
the ingredients are available in pharmacies, or online.

To prevent the hangover, Bishop-Stall will quaff – after drinking but before
sleep – milk thistle, for the liver; the amino acid and immune system aid
N-acetylcysteine; vitamins B1, B6 and B12, which boost metabolism; and that
famous gift to Jesus, frankincense – an anti-inflammatory"

~~~
CydeWeys
Or, alternatively, just don't drink so much. If you drank so much you're
feeling bad from it the next day then you definitely over-indulged. Hiding the
hangover isn't solving the root problem. Drinking too much causes real health
problems that aren't prevented by treating the symptoms.

I'm glad I get hangovers. It makes it really obvious when I've overdone it,
and it's a useful reminder not to do that again. If I could drink a lot all
the time and never experience the short term negative effects then I would
definitely experience the long-term ones of alcoholism.

~~~
stryan
There's more variables than just "don't drink so much". Just the other week I
woke up with a hangover after having two (4.5% ABV) beers. And this is coming
from somehow who often measures their intake in liters, not bottles.

Whether you get a hangover or not is dependent on pretty much all the
variables of alcohol metabolism: how much you drink, how fast, at what time,
whether you had a full stomach, what type of food you ate, the type of alcohol
(dark vs clear), whether you smoked cigarettes, etc. While you definitely
shouldn't drink so much, I think it's a bit disingenuous to simply the issue
down to how much you drank the night before.

(My personal theory for the two beers night is due to me drinking them some
time between 1 and 3 in the morning.)

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t0mbstone
I don't understand why every single article about hangover cures seems to
ignore the most obvious cure that works pretty much every time, especially
when most people already have ready access to it: Ibuprofen

1\. Set your alarm for 1-2 hours before you actually need to wake up.

2\. When the alarm goes off, take 1-2 Ibuprofen, drink some water, reset your
alarm, and go back to sleep.

3\. Wake up at the scheduled time, hangover free.

Note: Don't abuse this technique, as it will take a toll on your kidneys and
can be hard on your stomach lining. But in a pinch, it straight up works.

\---------

Edit: I just went and looked up the side effects of ibuprofen on the stomach
lining and all I have to say is, "Holy crap!". This would explain why I have
been having to take anti-acid medicine for years! The ibuprofen bottle doesn't
even mention the risks to your stomach, and my doctors and gastroenterologist
never said anything about it either. They just blamed it on my weight.

~~~
stryan
Ibuprofin can be hard on the stomach lining and result in stomach bleeding and
intestinal damage, especially when mixed with alcohol. Plus it can be hard on
an empty stomach and plenty of people have trouble eating during a hangover
due to nausea.

I take ibuprofen during a hangover now and then to help with the headaches,
but it often just leaves me with an equally-bad painful stomach.

~~~
Azkar
I once read an account of someone that took Ibuprofen on an empty stomach and
burned a hole in their stomach lining. Since then I always eat something
first.

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gr3yh47
cure it by never getting it. drink a full 8-14oz glass of water for every
single drink unit i.e. 1 shot, 1 beer, 1 glass of wine

havent had a hangover in close to a decade doing this.

~~~
nerdywordy
This is also great for avoiding binge drinking. I did this in college and it's
incredibly hard to drink to the kind of excess most college folks do when
you're needing to pee ever 15 minutes.

~~~
dsfyu404ed
> it's incredibly hard to drink to the kind of excess most college folks do
> when you're needing to pee ever 15 minutes.

Maybe with beer or mixed drinks. You can do a lot of shots in 15min.

~~~
kaybe
How many can you drink if you drink a glass of water for every one of them?
That was the proposal.

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Gys
Main problem for me is a headache the next morning. I once read this is caused
by water shortage in the brain (caused by the alcohol).

Drinking water is a solution, but normally that goes into the stomach, going
to the brain only indirectly. So in 'those cases' I go to bed with a little
water that I keep moving round a little in my mouth for a long as am able to
(because very soon I fall asleep). If I wake up in the night I do the same
again. Next morning again.

I read this 'trick' a long time ago in a book about Indians drinking 'fire
water'.

In general this helps al least for keeping away the headache (not the general
slow feeling, not the waking up more often, etc).

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wallflower
A long time ago, I was hanging with a bunch of pharma reps (“we’ll push
whatever they want us to push”) and they all mentioned that taking a Lipitor
before a drinking session would help prevent hangovers. An off-label use for
sure.

~~~
dmschulman
Wonder where they were getting their non-prescription prescription drugs from.
I guess any statin would do the trick here?

~~~
sjg007
Samples probably.

~~~
wallflower
Yes, samples.

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CoryMathews
I have found that Grapefruit Essential Oil rubbed onto the back of my neck
combined with one Vitamin B Multi and one molybdenum supplement pill before
bed get rid of the headache and body ache. Then in the morning 2 pints of
spring water with added sea salt and lemon juice. If my Stomach is unwell upon
waking a Ginger Kombucha really helps settle it. No matter how the body feels
it seems that the emotional low that follows still seems unavoidable. Coffee
in the morning seems to make really bad hangovers worse and really light ones
better.

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smn1234
My go-tos are: Coconut water and Pedialyte

~~~
dagoat
dioralyte works well too

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jotm
10 years lmao.

Here's my full recipe: "megadose" of B-vitamins (4-5x RDA), 1g vitamin C,
400-800mg ibuprofen with 200-400ml of water and some carbs/sugar (I prefer a
slice of bread). Highly recommended - 15 minutes of stretching/sit-
ups/dumbbells/walk outside/anything to get your blood going. Optional - a
coffee after 30-60 minutes.

Now, you can do it with only ibuprofen/paracetamol, but it won't remove all
the hangover effects (it barely subdues the headaches for me).

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mnm1
Benzodiazepines work extremely well even when one is vomiting etc. the next
day. They also work well for the DTs that serious alcoholics experience. I'm
pretty sure doctors know this but probably don't want to prescribe them for
something that will pass on its own. I can't blame them considering how
quickly dependence can form and other risks.

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LinuxBender
Another anti-inflammatory (there are many) that may play well in this case is
diet cranberry juice. Added bonus of some hydration.

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simonblack
Drink water while drinking alcoholic drinks and then afterwards before
bedtime. Also have antacids.

Alcohol -> acetaldehyde -> acetic acid. Antacid neutralyses the acid.

Alcohol dehydrates the body leading to electrolyte imbalance. Drinking water
between your brandies and afterwards prevents that dehydration.

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newnewpdro
N-acetylcysteine and Thiamin supplements taken the day of a night of heavy
drinking has proven quite effective in my experience. Sometimes it didn't seem
to work, but usually it was a substantial improvement.

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eterps
For some reason eating mangos before going to bed and the morning after seems
to work, dunno why.

~~~
codyb
Lots of B vitamins in Mangos I believe? I've heard B vitamins help hang overs
a lot.

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cglace
All I need is alka seltzer and two glasses of water. Works every time.

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btbuildem
My cure: pickle brine / cold water surf / ibuprofen

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irrational
Isn't the real cure to just not get a hangover to begin with? ;-)

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tambourine_man
TLDR anyone?

~~~
Raphmedia
> after drinking but before sleep – milk thistle, for the liver; the amino
> acid and immune system aid N-acetylcysteine; vitamins B1, B6 and B12, which
> boost metabolism; and that famous gift to Jesus, frankincense – an anti-
> inflammatory.

Note that milk thistle and probably a few other of those have interactions
with othe drugs. (emphasis mine)

