How to Treat a Hangover?

A hangover manifests itself as a combination of symptoms, including headache, dry mouth, and mild dizziness. It is still unclear exactly why overindulging in alcohol produces a hangover, but several factors come into play. Alcohol causes your body to lose water by stimulating your kidneys to excrete more water than you drink, resulting in dehydration. The more alcohol you drink, the more water passes out of your body. Alcohol also widens blood vessels, and the widening of vessels around the brain may cause pain, much as it does in a migraine headache.

Medically known as Veisalgia, hangover disturbs the regular metabolism of the human body and it is considered as a set of symptoms rather than a disease. There are, however, many simple home remedies available to treat hangovers.

1. Water is the simplest and one of the best remedies for hangover. Major cases of hangover are due to dehydration and water fills the gap; thereby treating the symptoms of hangover. A person should drink 8-10 glasses of water to get rid of hangovers. It is also beneficial to take 2-3 glasses of water before going to bed.

2. Apples and bananas may have a positive effect and treat hangover to a large extent. Apples help in eliminating headaches and is considered as a fast relief from hangover. A banana shake may also be consumed for immediate relief as it restores important minerals like potassium lost due to alcohol intake.

3. Honey is also an excellent option to treat the symptoms of hangover. For better results, add honey to a cup of boiling water and add a little lemon juice. It will provide quick relief from hangover. Honey helps in removing the harmful effect of alcohols due to the presence of fructose while the juice replenishes the lost fluids and sugar of the body.

4. Lemon is also a very good remedy for hangovers. Prepare a lemon tea for detoxifying the alcohol contents from the stomach. Lemon juice adding a little sugar can also be taken for curing hangovers. The juice helps in maintaining blood sugar levels which may get destabilized due to excessive alcohol intake.

5. Ginger can also be used as a home remedy for hangovers. Chew small pieces of ginger to get relief from hangovers. Alternately, boil 10-12 pieces of fresh ginger root in about four cups of water and add the juice of one orange, half lemon and half cup of honey. The decoction will provide quick relief from hangover by stabilizing blood glucose elevels.

6. Tomato can also be used as a remedy for hangovers. Tomato contains fructose which helps in the metabolism of alcohol in the body. Add a little lime juice to tomato juice for getting better results.

7. Cabbage can also act as a wonderful healer of hangover. Extract juice from cabbage and mix it with a little tomato juice. This will help in stabilizing the blood glucose levels and also provide quick relief from dehydration. The juice reduces the craving for alcohol too.

8. Vitamin B can also heal the effects of hangover. Take Vitamin B rich food for getting quick relief from hangovers.  Some of the most useful foods include whole grain wheat, cold milk and citrus foods like orange.

9. Vitamin C is an antioxidant. This helps your hangover situation in a number of ways. First, alcohol depresses your immune system, leaving you wide open for colds and other viruses. Vitamin C will boost most immune systems. Next, as alcohol metabolizes and our body detoxifies itself, a substantial number of free radicals are released into our body. Vitamin C's antioxidant qualities helps fight free radicals in our body as well as potentially alleviating effects of a hang over as well as possible damage to tissues that could occur.

10. Supplements such as magnesium during a hangover can help replace the magnesium depleted from your body while it processed the alcohol. Drinking alcohol can lead to magnesium deficiencies and more severe hangovers.

11. Apart from the regular home remedies, some exercise may also be helpful in treating hangover. Hangover affected individuals may start with mild exercises like brisk walking and then increase the speed. Exercise helps in proper metabolism of alcohol, thereby reducing the ill effects of hangover.

12. Sleep is one of the most essential treatments for a hangover as your body in most cases does not get a chance to go into the R.E.M. (rapid eye movement) state of sleep which provides proper restoration for your brain due to the rebound of glutamine in your body.

13. A very effective element in the process of alleviating hangover symptoms is pain relievers. Try to avoid stomach irritants such as aspirin.

There are some things that you should avoid while you have a hangover.  Avoid any caffeinated drinks.  Caffeine is also a diuretic, like alcohol is, and will cause further dehydration.  Plus, many coffees and sodas are rough on your stomach and can irritate your stomach lining further.  You should also avoid any hangover cures that involve the "hair of the dog".  This does not do anything more than put more alcohol in your system and ultimately will make the hangover worse.  Stick to water or juice if you really want to feel better.