Home remedies for hangovers have been circulating for years, but they are invariably ineffective. To eliminate a health condition, we must first isolate the true causes. In the case of hangovers, the causes include dehydration, a sugar crash, and chemical poisoning. Modern alcoholic beverages are far more likely to produce hangovers than those available decades ago. Many wines now contain nitrates, which are known to cause headaches and grogginess, whilst reducing oxygen flow in the body to yield extreme acidosis. Some alcoholic drinks contain artificial flavors and colors, and are barely comparable to the beverages of yesteryear. Drinking large amounts of these beverages is the equivalent to having a huge binge on chemically and genetically engineered ConAgre foods. To make the point about toxicity clear: taking a teaspoon of powdered activated charcoal prior to drinking these toxic products will usually prevent a hangover, since activated charcoal prevents the absorption of most poisons, while not effecting alcohol.
Most people already know that drinking water during a hangover is important, because alcohol causes dehydration. However, they do not realize that one of the main reasons for a hangover is an extreme sugar crash. Alcohol is little more than fermented sugar, so the aftermath of it is drowsiness, poor mood, headaches, and a general feeling of weakness, all of which are associated with both hangovers and sugar crashes. Consuming a small amount of sugar (1 -2 teaspoons) during a hangover will speed recovery time dramatically. As always, we recommend the use of evaporated cane juice instead of the bleached and refined sugars whenever possible. Of course, honey is always fine.
Some people recommend vitamin B-12 during a hangover, which assists with concentration and energy. Vitamin B-12 can be taken daily in the form of methylcobalamin, but never use cyanocobalamin. You should either chew up your B-12 vitamins, or hold them under the tongue to get direct absorption into the blood. Otherwise, normal digestion will destroy most of the B-12.
Of course, we are not encouraging people drink large amounts of alcohol, as it may produce long-term health consequences, and it has a tendency to make some people violent or extremely depressed. It is also important to remember that with routine heavy drinking, some individuals will develop a severe addiction to alcohol. Drinking moderate amounts of organic red wine, however, can actually benefit the health.
Tylenol Warning
Tylenol is extremely poisonous when combined with alcohol. It is likely to have killed a large number of college students, who were recovering from hangovers, and later their deaths were blamed on "binge drinking"; not the Tylenol. It is difficult to know how many people this has happened to, because Tylenol liver toxicity is not tested for during the autopsies.
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