Live Well

cures

Splitting headaches, sickness, dizziness, dehydration: anyone who's ever drunk too much knows the consequences of it.

he !"S recommends:

Men should not regularly drink more than three to four units of alcohol a day. Women should not regularly drink more than two to three units a day. If you've had a heavy drinking session, avoid alcohol for 48 hours.

"Regularly" means drinking this amount every day or most days of the week.

lcohol is a diuretic !meaning it removes fluids from the "ody#, so drinking e$cessively can lead to dehydration. %ehydration is what causes many of the sym&toms of a hangover. lcohol can u&set your stomach and give you a "ad night's slee&. (ou may still have some alcohol in your system the ne$t morning. #ure myth )angover cures are generally a myth. *here are no cures for a hangover. *here are ti&s for avoiding hangovers and for easing the sym&toms if you have one. *he "est way to avoid a hangover is not to drink. If you decide to drink, do it sensi"ly and within the recommended limits. *o minimise the risk of future serious health &ro"lems, men shouldn't regularly drink more than three to four units a day. Women shouldn't regularly drink more than two to three units a day. *o avoid a hangover, don't drink more than you know your "ody can co&e with. If you're not sure how much that is, "e careful. $now your units dding u& your units can "e tricky at first, "ut once you know how many units a drink contains, you can kee& track of what you're consuming. +ind out what a unit is on the deskto& alcohol tracker, which is also availa"le as an i,hone a&&. (ou may "e sur&rised. large glass of wine, for instance, contains around three units. In one evening, that can -uickly add u& to a lot more than you intended to drink. )ere are some e$am&les. a can of standard lager, "eer or "itter / 0.8 units a &int of standard lager, "eer or "itter / 1.2 units

a small glass of wine !013ml# / 0.3 units a large glass of wine !134ml# / 2 units a measure of s&irits !13ml# / 0 unit

+ollow these ti&s to kee& hangovers away. %on't drink on an em&ty stomach. 5efore you go out, have a meal that includes car"ohydrates !such as &asta or rice# or fats. *he food will hel& slow down the "ody's a"sor&tion of alcohol. %on't drink dark6coloured drinks if you've found that you're sensitive to them. *hey contain natural chemicals called congeners !im&urities#, which irritate "lood vessels and tissue in the "rain and can make a hangover worse. %rink water or non6fi77y soft drinks in "etween each alcoholic drink. 8ar"onated !fi77y# drinks s&eed u& the a"sor&tion of alcohol into your system. %rink a &int or so of water "efore you go to slee&. 9ee& a glass of water "y the "ed to si& if you wake u& during the night. he morning after If you wake u& the ne$t morning feeling terri"le, you &ro"a"ly didn't follow this advice. lthough there are no real cures for hangovers, there are ways to ease the sym&toms. *reatment involves rehydrating the "ody so it can deal with the &ainful sym&toms !though the "est time to rehydrate is "efore going to slee&#. :ver6the6counter &ainkillers can hel& with headaches and muscle cram&s. ,aracetamol6"ased remedies are usually &refera"le, as as&irin may further irritate the stomach and increase nausea and sickness. ;ugary foods may hel& you feel less trem"ly. In some cases, an antacid may "e needed to settle your stomach first. 5ouillon sou&, a thin vegeta"le6"ased "roth, is a good source of vitamins and minerals, which can to&6 u& de&leted resources. Its main advantage is that it's easy for a fragile stomach to digest. (ou can re&lace lost fluids "y drinking "land li-uids that are easy on the digestive system, such as water, soda water and isotonic drinks !availa"le in most sho&s#. ")air of the dog" !drinking more alcohol# does not hel&. %rinking in the morning is a risky ha"it, and you may sim&ly "e delaying the a&&earance of sym&toms until the alcohol wears off again. If you've had a heavy drinking session, hangover or not, doctors advise that you wait 48 hours "efore drinking any more alcohol, in order to give your "ody tissues time to recover. ;ometimes, of course, a hangover makes that advice easier to follow.