a tippler’s life for me : preventing hangovers

I like to think of my relationship with liquor as a love affair; somewhat naughty yet fulfilling in ways a ‘conventional’ romance could never be.

I truly enjoy the experience of drinking.

From the complex aroma and warm tingle of the first sip of a good scotch to the blue collar fun of downing Pabst Blue Ribbon in some dingy dive bar, boozing is a treat.

I’d like to believe the fact I haven’t had a hangover in the last two years is a testament to my fortitude and olympic training in the imbibing arts. More likely though, it’s thanks to some rules I *try* to follow when drinking.

RULE # 1 : Hydrate, Hydrate, Hydrate

Despite what you may think, all that ‘water’ in booze isn’t doing your body any good. The reason is simple; alcohol is a diuretic. This basically means more water is used by your body to process and expel your drink than is contained within it. Since your body relies on water to survive, it’s important to keep your system balanced.

For every drink you have, try to follow it with an equal sized glass of water.

RULE # 2 : Stick to top shelf booze

Part of what causes a hangover is the amount of contaminents which remain in the liquor after the filtration process in complete. Higher quality (and yes, priced) liquor constantly advertises the fact that additional distillation is used (”Triple Distilled!”) for a reason; it makes the taste smoother and eases your body’s work in processing it. And leads to a lot less hangovers.

If you can’t afford top shelf booze, or simply like the thrill of buying a 1.75L of “Aristocrat” vodka; consider investing in a liquor filter, like the one my spiky haired friend Glenn reviewed here.

RULE # 3 : Eat before you drink

Yes, we’ve all heard the debate; “I get drunker when I don’t eat anything beforehand” vs. “I got wasted last night after that 3 course prix fixe meal at Restaurant De Hoity Toity”. No matter what you’ve heard, one fact remains: food helps prevent the immediate absorbtion of alcohol into your bloodstream. This is beneficial as it allows your body to more gradually acclimate to your boozing, which helps not only prevent hangovers, but lets you enjoy the drinking itself more as well.

RULE # 4 : Drink water, or even Gatorade before bed

Your body needs two things at this point: hydration and electrolytes. Maybe a big glass of water FOLLOWED by a dose of Gatorade might be just what the Dr. ordered. I’ve recently been hearing about using Pedialyte for this purpose, and some of the testomonials out there are pretty compelling.

RULE # 5 : Take a multivitamin BEFORE bed, Take an aspirin IN THE MORNING

A multivitamin can help replenish the B vitamins the booze has depleted. An aspirin in the morning can ease a potential headache and is a decent pain reliever overall.

The most IMPORTANT thing regarding pills, especially before bed when you’ve been drinking is this:

you shouldn’t take analgesics (that is, headache medicine) of any kind at this stage. Some folks pop pills as a preventative, even though the inevitable headache hasn’t yet arrived. This isn’t a good idea. Aspirin upsets the stomach and aggravates the symptoms of a hangover. Acetaminophen (Tylenol), when mixed with the alcohol still in your bloodstream, might cause your liver to explode (best to avoid).

Soyouwanna.com (from whom much of the above is excerpted) also has an excellent “Ultimate Hangover Cure” which I have used, and suggested less professional grade drinking friends use, to GREAT effect.

Drink hard, drink often.