Since when did Saints start
writing about Alcohol and it’s after effects? How would they know? If they did, would they still have the saintly status?? Well, If you have not read it, here is
the link…saint's
tips .
Well since the Saint has ventured
into an area unfamiliar to him, I thought it was my solemn duty to correctly
inform general populace about a phenomenon called.. Hangover! Let’s first try
and understand what is Hangover, before I tell you how to avoid them or cure
them.
In Medical parlance (these medics think they know everything!)
hangover is experiencing an unpleasant condition both physiologically and psychologically
( imagine.. they are already calling us psychos !!) following excessive drinking
!! Ask them what is excessive drinking and you would probably draw a blank. ( see what I mean about medical science not
being absolute).
Let’s now look at the symptoms as
described in Medicinal studies.
1. Severe Headache:
What the hell ? I get the most severe
ones when my wife starts nagging! I usually get one, when a righteous ( read: non-drinking) guest overstays
their welcome! Sometimes even when, I wake
up, when normal people do ! What the hell , I have even got one because of alcohol
abstinence !! You see there could be
multiple reasons; why blame the poor alcohol for your faults?
2. Drowsiness: Now that is even more common. Put me in a
seminar/conference/lecture or even a documentary film ; I will exhibit this
symptom spectacularly.
3. Lethargy and
Listlessness: Now , now this is
taking things a bit far. I thought one drank to get over the lethargy and
listlessness! ( this doesn’t make sense
at all.. if you don’t believe me try this home experiment......Make a
lethargic/listless person drink a couple of stiff drinks, and then turn up the
music...... do let me know what happens then)
4. Nausea : Does this apply to Men too ?? I always believed this happened not because of
excessive drinking, but what one did afterwards… and only applied to women!( now I am confused!) Anyway, thinking
logically, it could be body’s mechanism to throw out the unwanted stuff and
thus make more room for booze!
Internet searches will give you
plenty of (untested and non-scientific.. my opinion)
solutions as a cure for hangovers. While some of them does work occasionally,
practise them at your own peril.
Here are the most common ones.
a) Having fried
or greasy food ( usually bacon) ,
fries and heavy carb food, will reduce the hangover instantly, the logic
being the fat absorbs away all the alcohol.
b) Tomato
Juice or Grapefruit juice are rich in Lycopene, which acts against the
congeners found in alcohol, thus overriding their effect.
c) Lemonade or
yogurt, muesli (even lassi) cuts the
alcohol level in the blood stream, thus easing the hangover away.
d) Eggs and
Lean meat . they are full of proteins and Amino Acids that spruce up the liver
function and eliminate the after effects of alcohol.
e) Nuts and
fresh fruits, like kiwi and bananas are loaded with electrolytes and minerals
which are lost due to the heavy drinking and subsequent dehydration.
Supplementing them takes care of the resultant hangover.
f) Pills like
the aspirin etc are also supposedly effective.
Well, to say the least, having
tried all the above and must admit, they have their benefits. But if you really
want to avoid an hangover, you need to
do what I do.. fight fire with fire ! Like the famous hindi saying goes “ Loha
hi loha ko kaat ta hai” .. Avoid
Hangover --- Stay Drunk !!