Nutrition Tips to Avoid and Treat a Hangover

Its hangover season! Our guide to avoiding a hangover.

I think it’s fair to say that nobody likes a hangover but unfortunately, the festive period seems to lend itself to the dreaded H word. The bad news is I can’t offer you a cure but what I can advise you on how is how to prevent hangovers and how to minimise their nasty effects. So, before you resign yourself to a dark room read on…

Eat before And After

It’s true that drinking on an empty stomach is not a good idea. Even a light snack is better than nothing e.g. a slice of toast with Peanut butter, Banana and a glass of milk. Food slows down your body’s absorption of alcohol. After drinking always aim to have a balanced meal. Alcohol can lower blood glucose levels resulting in tiredness and headache. Drink a pint of water before bed and take a glass of water with you to sip if you wake up during the night.

Avoid Dehydration

The main symptoms of a hangover are due to dehydration. For every alcoholic drink try to have a glass of water or sugar-free squash or a non-alcoholic drink. Carbonated fizzy drinks are best avoided as they speed up the absorption of alcohol into your system.

Rehydrate

The following day rehydrate with electrolyte-containing fluids e.g. diluted orange juice, soda water, isotonic drinks or milk. The Hair of the dog approach may be tempting but I wouldn’t really recommend it.

Choose carefully

Don’t drink dark-coloured drinks if you’ve found you're sensitive to them. They contain natural chemicals known as congeners which irritate blood vessels and tissue in the brain making a hangover worse.

Rest and Recover

The key message is to enjoy yourself but rest and recover – the same applies to those that exercise regularly, sleep and rest are essential. Sometimes it’s inevitable that we will burn the candle at both ends but just be mindful that this will mean your body requires more rest to avoid you burning out.

Sweat It Out!

After the recovery process, it's always good for your health and wellbeing to get out there and stay active.