Hangovers

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Hangovers are probably the most common student ailment. They are a result of ingesting too much alcohol for your body to cope with. There is a link between the sugar intake between a heavy drinking session and the sleep duration afterwards as when an individual is out drinking they are in-taking excessive amounts of sugar however when they go home and sleep the sugar becomes withdrawn often making the individual dehydrated, it could be argued that high sugar drinks can aid a hangover the following morning.

Symptoms

Having a hangover feels like having a very bad pulsating headache. It may make you want to vomit, and may affect your vision, make you feel dizzy, or give you the shakes. It's generally pretty unpleasant.

Prevention

Prevention is of course better than a cure. You can just not drink, but that's no fun. A very good way to prevent a hangover is to drink a couple of pints of water before you go to bed. This along with sleeping for as long as possible seems to be the best way to drink without the danger of feeling awful. Also what i find very useful (stim90) is drinking soft sugary drinks in between alcoholic drinks. I heard it on the radio and has since been very useful in nights out before work the next day. Its easy and you can get like half a pint of coke or whatever and say to your mates its vodka and coke!

Another preventative measure is to take a tablet or two of NAC (N-Acetyl-Cysteine) with the water mentioned above. It really works!

Vomiting

Night vomit is much better than morning vomit. If you feel the need to vomit soon after drinking then do not suppress the urge unless you're trying to get off with someone. Vomiting soon after drinking will generally clear the alcohol from your system but really shouldn't induced. Morning vomiting is horrible. Your body thinks it can clear the alcohol, but it's already in your system and you end up vomiting bile. After any vomiting you should try to drink water. Wait at least half an hour before brushing your teeth, as doing so immediately afterwards will rub the acid in, and weaken and damage the teeth

If you need to stop vomiting or stop the threat of (if you are trying to pull someone or need to use public transport or such), the best thing is ginger. Root ginger eaten straight or in a tea is extremely good to stop you vomiting and will get rid of nausea. It also freshens the mouth wonderfully (better then mints) after throwing up.

"Cures"

People come up with all sorts of ideas for hangover cures. Some are good and some are nonsense. Here are some of the common ones

"Hair o' the dog"

Derives from the expression 'a hair of the dog that bit you'. This means getting up and drinking more alcohol. I'm not convinced it works, but it's good fun. Brandy tends to work the best I think; another famous example is the 'Bloody Mary', tomato juice and vodka.

Raw egg white

Gives you plenty of protein. Might make you vom. Generally a bit minging.

Cooked Breakfast

Generally better after vomiting. Very greasy, and not so nice for your stomach, but will certainly wake you up.

Water

This is a really really good idea. Alcohol dehydrates you, and drinking plenty of water will make you feel better. Put ice in it too.

Vitamin C

This is supposed to really work very well. Oranges or orange juice are a good source. Both will give you fluids too. You can also get effervescent vitamin C tablets and if you can bear the taste they're quite good.

NovoShot Oxygen

Drinking to much alcohol can cause hypoxia, a lack of oxygen in the brain. Although deydration is a major cause, a lack of oxygen also contributes to that bad feeling the morning after. Without oxygen, the body loses brain function and it's ability to metabolise the alcohol molecules quickly. Taking a few shots of NovoShot oxygen during and after a night out picks up the bodies oxygen levels and assists the liver in breaking down the alcohol molecules in the bloodstream, reducing that hungover-feeling in the morning.

Diet Coke

Always works for me. Best served ice cold.

Chocolate Milkshake

I didn't believe this one until I tried it. For some reason it really seems to settle the stomach. Have a small glass and you'll be on the road to recovery in no time.

McDonalds strawberry milkshakes, whilst being very bad for you even in the smallest portion, get rid of hangovers like a dream. Have a group trip there in the morning for hungover bonding!

Juice Mix

A glass of apple juice, topped up with sparkling water and a squeeze of honey. Gentler on the stomach than orange juice, but still has the nutrients to help on the morning after.

Happy Drinking