Party Season! Of course, the best way to avoid a hangover is not to drink. Volunteer to be the designated driver, or just keep your glass full of water, juice or seltzer. You can still have a great time, and other party-goers will be too focused on their own fun to know or care.
If you’re bound and determined to imbibe, here are some other tips.
- Eat first. Have some protein and healthy fat in your system before you start to drink, even if it means eating before you head out to your event.
- Drink 2 glasses of water for each glass of alcohol. You will pace yourself, and avoid dehydration, which is responsible for many of the symptoms of a hangover.
- Don’t try to keep up with others. Your body may not process alcohol the same way as someone else’s, or you may not want to pay the same price they will. Again, no one really cares what you are drinking, or how much. Keep your glass filled with something non-alcoholic, and have a great time.
- Avoid sweet drinks. The sugar compounds the effects of the alcohol, depleting your system of more nutrients, and leading to a bigger crash later.
- Minerals are lost when you drink, but I don’t recommend a high sugar sports drink to compensate. Instead, try an unsweetened electrolyte formula (I have 2 in the office) or packets of EmergenC, which combines Vit C, Vit B and minerals, including potassium.
- Research shows that supplementing with amino acids Taurine and Cysteine , along with Vitamins B and C, may help minimize hangover symptoms.
- Drink a big glass of water before going to sleep, and keep a glass by your bedside too, in case you wake up thirsty but don’t feel up to getting a drink.
- Eat breakfast within an hour of waking, and make sure you have protein and complex carbs to redeem your low blood sugar, and help keep it stable as you recover.
Some of the suggestions from this article were used for a piece published in The Advertiser News. Link to that article here
Fran Sussman Holistic Services 