Hangover Cures – Fact or Fiction

At Portland Cocktail Week, we attended a very informative seminar on how to drink healthier. You might ask, is that really possible? We think that it is. As part of the seminar, we reviewed a number of popular hangover cures to see if they were purely a myth or if there was some substance behind them. We thought that we would bring the most popular ones to you. Here you go, hangover cures – fact or fiction:

• Hair of the Dog  (drinking the next morning) – Fiction.  It might help you feel better but it doesn’t cure your hangover.
• Alka Seltzer – Fact.  But, it  only works a little.
• Burying yourself in sand (my personal fave) – Fiction.  And, it might be dangerous for your health if you get buried alive.
• Burnt toast – Fact.  The charcoal on the burned toast helps process the alcohol.
• Fatty Food – Fiction.  Fatty food can help prevent a hangover by helping absorb the alcohol when drinking but doesn’t seem to help after the fact.
• Spicy Food – Fact.  The spice helps sweat out the alcohol.
• Taking a sauna – Fiction.  This alleged cure is dangerous as the heat doesn’t mix well from the toxins from the alcohol.
• Fruit Juice – Fact.  Make sure its fresh and doesn’t have too much sugar.
• Black Coffee – Fiction.  The caffeine dehyrdrates you.  It has the opposite effect.
• Bananas – Fact.  The potassium helps rebuild your electrolytes.
• Rubbing limes on your arms (don’t know where this came from) – Fiction.  It might help your skin but certainly doesn’t help your hangover.
• Water – Fact.  Helps to rehydrate.