1. Hydrate

Alcohol is a diuretic, which means you lose a lot of water after a night of drinking. As a result, your liver and kidneys can?t process the alcohol properly to rid your body of the toxins in those five green apple martinis. Gulping gallons of water won?t cure your hangover, but it will rehydrate your parched body and make you feel better.

Sports drinks containing electrolytes may help your body rehydrate more quickly than drinking water alone. The faster you restore proper fluid balance, the sooner you?ll feel better. Hydration is the key when you need to cure a hangover. But avoid coffee, or at least have a cup of decaf. While caffeine may put pep in your step, it?s also a diuretic, which will leave you even more dehydrated.


2. Hair of the Dog

What about the ?hair of the dog that bit you? ? drinking more of the previous night?s poison? Some claim this popular antidote is a sure-fire way to feel better. But others say it only delays the inevitable and will make you feel worse, no matter how much better you feel in the short term.

If starting the morning with a drink triggers a gag reflex, try a Virgin Mary. The tomato juice in this vodka-free Bloody Mary is high in fructose, which will help your body metabolize the alcohol in last night?s cocktails more efficiently.


3. Sweat It Out

If your body can handle it, drag yourself out of bed, lace up your sneakers and go for a run (or walk). Exercise increases circulation and ushers those toxins out of your body. But don?t push yourself too hard. Strenuous exercise is apt to dehydrate you further and make you feel worse. However, a brief, brisk walk can get your blood going and speed the removal of toxic wastes from cells and tissues. You?ll probably feel more like lying on the couch all day, but you?ll be stuck there a long time if you don?t try to get moving.


4. Painkillers, Please!

You?ll be tempted to pop pills to ease the pain, but be careful what you take. Avoid acetaminophen, found in over-the-counter medications such as Tylenol. When taken with alcohol or to nurse a hangover, it can cause liver damage. Ibuprofen doesn?t mix well with alcohol either. It can cause stomach irritation and bleeding, especially when you continually use it to treat hangovers or take more than the recommended dosage.

So, what can you take? Try aspirin for your headache, but only if you?re not too queasy; it can be hard on a sensitive stomach and, just like acetaminophen and ibuprofen, can cause stomach irritation and bleeding with prolonged use. On the plus side, it?s caffeine-free and is a prostaglandin inhibitor (generally, your level of prostaglandins ? hormone-like fatty acids that increase pain and inflammation ? are already elevated during a hangover).


5. Have Sex

With your beer goggles gone, he might not look as hot as he did last night. However, the best help for your hangover could be lying right next to you. Sex releases endorphins, which reduce hangover symptoms. Plus you?ll burn off a few of last night?s liquid calories. Skeptical? Try it anyway!


6. Take Your Vitamins

Alcohol reacts chemically in your body to deplete your stores of vitamins A, B (especially B6) and C, which can intensify hangover symptoms. Look to B vitamins (especially B6) to help your body metabolize and get rid of alcohol that?s hanging around and causing problems. *****ly pear extract, found at health-supplement stores, may relieve dry mouth and nausea by reducing inflammation caused by cogeners (impurities found in low-quality alcohol).

Vitamin and mineral therapy upon awakening can give your body the nutritional boost it needs to cure a hangover. When you wake up, take a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement. You can also take the following supplements separately, following the dosage guidelines on the bottles: thiamine, riboflavin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin C, and zinc. Wash down a multivitamin with some vitamin C-rich orange juice for an extra boost. (If you take prescription medications or have a pre-existing medical condition, talk with your doctor before taking supplements.)


7. Take Cysteine
Cysteine, an amino acid, neutralizes the poisonous effects of acetaldehyde, the by-product of alcohol metabolism that is thought to be responsible for hangovers. It works by attracting the toxin and breaking it down into a non-toxic form similar to vinegar. Cysteine is available at specialty food stores and some drugstores.


8. Eat

Go easy on the high-fat breakfasts and resist the urge for a greasy McAnything. Instead, opt for a balanced combination of carbohydrates and proteins, which will help soothe the stomach and supply you with vital nutrients. Eggs are easy on a churning stomach and are also highly restorative.

Chowing down on a banana will increase your potassium supply, which alcohol depletes. Plus, this ?world?s perfect food? contains a natural antacid to help fight nausea, as well as magnesium to relax blood vessels and ease a headache. While you?re at it, put some honey on that banana. The fructose will help your body metabolize the alcohol faster.


9. Sleep It Off

Limiting your boozy activities to Friday and Saturday nights will allow you enough time to sleep away your next-day pain. But if holiday parties or impromptu celebrations land on a ?school night,? it?s a good idea to set aside some extra time to recover.

Nursing a hangover at the office makes for an unproductive workday, not to mention a bad impression on the boss. Calling in sick once won?t hurt your career, but throwing up on the head honcho?s shoe will.


10. Wait It Out

Time is the only true cure for a hangover ? that?s what it takes for the alcohol to leave your body. Home remedies for the common hangover range from the simple to the downright weird. From aspirin to cabbage soup, and steam saunas to bacon and eggs, every weekend warrior seems to have a personal favorite they'll swear by.

Do any of these countless folk hangover cures really work better than others?


The Researched Conclusion: In a 2005 study published in the British Medical Journal, researchers answer that question with a resounding and definitive "no." After studying a variety of hangover cures, they found no compelling evidence that any of them significantly alleviated symptoms such as headache, nausea or fatigue. The most effective remedy according to the study? Time, plain and simple.

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ December 31, 2007 07:44 PM: Message edited by: phoenixrising79 ]</font>