Help For That Hangover Headache

The cure for the hangover headache is to not drink alcoholic drinks. Of course, many adults do not choose to not drink. They think one more mixed drink, one more glass of wine, or one...

The cure for the hangover headache is to not drink alcoholic drinks. Of course, many adults do not choose to not drink. They think one more mixed drink, one more glass of wine, or one more shot will not make that much difference in the morning. Then reality sets in when they wake up with a vicious hangover headache. Often people drinking just lose count on how much they are drinking. They are having a good time with friends and do not pay attention to the number of drinks they have.

The hangover headache is the most common form of headache reported! Studies show that people who regularly overdo alcohol are not the ones that have hangover most often. It is the inexperienced, occasional, light drinkers that are more likely to have a hangover headache

Why do we get hangover headaches? The primary reason is alcohol causes dehydration. Alcohol causes you to urinate more often and it turns off the antihydration mechanism in the body. Alcohol also affects the liver and makes it less able to produce glucose. We need glucose because it fuels all the cells in our body. Your brain cells are the most susceptible to the shortage of glucose.

Alcohol also blocks the important chemicals that allow your body’s cells communicate with one another. The common chemical is prostaglandin. This chemical affects the way our body registers pain. That is why there are many reports of drinkers with injuries. They body is not registering physical pain.

Another chemical that your body needs to process is acetaldehyde. This chemical makes you sweat, look flushed, speeds up your heart rate, and finally turns your stomach and makes it nauseous.

Most adults believe that alcohol will help them sleep better. The opposite is true. Alcohol causes a disturbed sleep. You may find that you wake up more often during the night because alcohol interferes with rapid-eye movement. Not sleeping well contributes to the headache.

There are ways to help prevent hangover headaches and ways to treat them. Eat a large greasy meal before you begin drinking. The grease coats the stomach and slows down the absorption of the alcohol. If you drink a glass of water between each drink that also will help prevent a headache. Remember, alcohol causes dehydration! Don’t smoke while you are drinking. Smoking also deprives the brain of the oxygen it needs. Smoking and drinking deprives the brain of two essential needs; oxygen and glucose.

Do NOT take drugs with alcohol. If you are taking a prescription, check the container to see what it says about mixing the drug with alcohol. You can use aspirin, ibuprofen or naproxen. You should avoid any brand of pain reliever that contains acetaminophen.

The next morning, take it easy on your stomach. Take in a little sugar, and eat a light meal. Greasy meals are not recommended the morning after a drinking binge. Drink water or juices to hydrate your body. Experts recommend apple juice or tomato juice. They discourage the juices with acid in them.

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