Hangover : The ways to get around it --- The Sinner's Twist

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 !!