How to Stay Hangover-Free this Weekend
Happy Friday, everybody! It looks like we’re in for a beautiful, warm, low-pollution Friday night. For many of us, this means an al-fresco dinner and some drinks under the stars. Because we care about you and your health, we’d like to remind you to drink responsibly, and to offer some tips for making sure you wake up in the best possible form tomorrow morning.
Less is more
When it comes to the question of how to avoid hangovers, there are two possible answers. One is very short: Don’t drink. Studies have shown that it is almost impossible to get hung-over with this approach, so, if you’re really serious about making the most of your Saturday, convince your friends that your ginger ale is actually a whiskey and soda, and try not to act too smug around them tomorrow.
Eat and drink up
As for the long answer, many of you already know the drill – drink lots of water to counteract alcohol’s dehydrating effects, and make sure you have something in your stomach to slow down absorption of alcohol. Make it easy for yourself to hydrate by ordering a big bottle of water for the table when you’re at a bar, or by stashing a bottle of water in your bag. You can also make a point of buying a bottle of water (or, better, coconut water or a sports drink) every time you switch locations, or whenever you go out for a smoke. When it comes to lining your stomach with food, opt for carbs, protein, and fats before and throughout your night out.
Try to avoid fake alcohol
If you’ve been in China long enough, chances are you’ve had one of those crushing hangovers that can only be explained by fake alcohol. It can be hard to stay completely clear of the stuff in Beijing, but you can start by avoiding suspiciously cheap drinks. If you’re going to a new bar and you’re not sure you trust the stuff on their shelves, you can test it out by asking for a shot of a liquor you know well and doing a taste and smell test. You can also ask to look at the bottle, which you can check for obvious clues like spelling mistakes or sketchy manufacturing dates.
Pick your poison strategically
Alcohol is made by fermentation, and this process produces side-products called congeners. These substances contribute to the flavor of a drink, and are also thought to be partly responsible for hangovers. Try to opt for beverages low in congeners, like vodka, gin, and rum, and limit your consumption of high-congener drinks, like whiskey, red wine, tequila, brandy, and cognac. If you are drinking mixed drinks, it’s also a good idea to use sugary sodas, because sugar can slow down your body’s absorption of alcohol.
Slow and steady wins the race
Try to go easy on your system by making a conscious effort to drink more slowly, or by opting for drinks with ice in them. The ice will melt as you drink, which will make your beverage more diluted (and less potent). You can also consider alternating alcoholic beverages with ginger ale, tonic water, or mocktails to reduce your overall alcohol intake. We understand that these steps involve a certain amount of self-control, which can be harder to exercise the more you drink, but do try to keep them in mind!
Get your beauty sleep
Alcohol is known to disrupt your sleep cycle, and you’re likely to toss and turn after a big night out. And we all know that a hangover compounded with fatigue can make you feel like a real zombie. To avoid scaring too many young children, make sure you keep the next morning free and can sleep in, especially if you plan on staying out past your usual bedtime.
Medicate wisely
If you do end up with a hangover and are tempted to pop a pill to relieve your symptoms, do so with caution. Many of your hangover symptoms are due to dehydration and inflammation after a taxing night of drinking, and your liver will be working overtime trying to make sense of it all. Try to avoid paracetamol (also called acetaminophen), which can put more strain on your liver, and opt instead for ibuprofen, which has an anti-inflammatory as well as pain-relieving effect. If you have a weak stomach, though, see if you can power through without pills, because ibuprofen can irritate the stomach.
Caffeinate carefully
Coffee is also a tempting hangover remedy, but it, too, should be used with caution. Because coffee also has a dehydrating effect on the body, it can exacerbate your hangover symptoms, so if you really feel like you can’t go without your daily dose of caffeine, try to drink extra water to make sure you’re not doing further harm to your delicate composition.
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