The Hangover Essay, Research Paper

The Hangover

Just about every drinker has woken up with a painful headache, dry mouth, nausea, and dizziness that come from overindulging in too much alcohol. The definition for the word hangover is the unpleasant physical effects following a heavy use of alcohol. In other words, a hangover is the painful day after drinking one drink after another. There is no cure for a hangover, just ways to prevent it from happening.

Hangover is where the active ingredient in alcohol, ethanol, is transformed to pyruvate causing the toxic chemical called acetaldehyde (Kater, pars. 4-5). Acetaldehyde is a chemical that is processed by the liver at a fixed rate no matter how much is all ready in the blood system; this process uses a lot of the body’s energy; therefore, the body tries to restore the normal energy causing dehydration (Kater, par. 5). Dehydration is what causes all the horrible feelings the drinker comes across the morning after drinking.

Once dehydration comes into play there is only one cure, time. The body needs time and plenty of liquids to get over a hangover. There is only one way to prevent a hangover, not drinking too much; however, small amounts can cause side effects as well (www.mayohealth.org). Rest and rehydrate- give yourself time to recover, and drink bland liquids, such as water, soda, fruit juices or broths (www.mayohealth.org). Use over-the-counter pain medications, such as aspirin or ibuprofen, to reduce a headache; however, when combined with alcohol they may cause stomach irritation, and too much can be toxic to the liver (www.mayohealth.org). Eating something the morning after is a plus. Eggs are more difficult to digest than some other breakfast foods, so have some toast and fruit instead, or a small bowl of cereal (www.learn2.com).

There are a few things to do before drinking to help lessen a hangover. Plan for the evening by choosing your poison (www.learn2.com). Stay away from tropical drinks and carbonated drinks; carbonation speeds up alcohol absorption (www.learn2.com). Having a full stomach when you are drinking helps to slow down the effects of alcohol and reduce the severity of a hangover (www.drinkease.com/drinkease2).

Some alcoholic drinks cause worse hangovers than other drinks. Vodka form less congeners, such as acetaldehyde, than gin, scotch whiskey form four times more congeners than gin, brandy and rum form six times more congeners than gin, and bourbon forms eight times more congeners than gin (www.learn2.com). In addition, red wine has more congeners than white wine (www.learn2.com). Something to avoid during or before drinking is coffee; coffee has caffeine, which increases the amount of alcohol absorbed by the body (Kater 5).

There are many beliefs on how to overcome a hangover. A tablespoon of honey or sauerkraut juice are suppose to reduce the congeners running around in the body (www.learn2.com). Around the world, there are many supposed treatments for a hangover; further more, in France they eat a large T-bone steak or drink a chocolate milk shake, in outer Mongolia they eat a pickled sheep’s ear in a glass of tomato juice, and in Puerto Rico they rub a lemon under their drinking arm (www.drinkease.com). My theory is to puke, drink water, and take a vitamin before one goes to bed.

Once again, there is no cure to a hangover other than time. Some people handle alcohol better than others and taking different things to avoid a hangover differ from person to person as well; therefore, causing many theories on how to avoid a hangover. A person must find what works best for them, which a painful process. Overall, I love to go out and drink. I have had many hangovers; therefore, I know what works for me and what drinks to stay away from. For everyone else, I wish them lots of luck in their process on finding what works for them.

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Kater, John. “How to avoid a hangover.”

Tucson Weekly 4 Jan. 1999 .