Why Am I Hungover? Alcohol

WHY AM I HUNGOVER? ALCOHOL

🍾😣After a night of drinking, ever woken up with a headache, feeling fatigued and nauseous? With poor concentration, sensitivity to light or noise, and an overall poor sense of wellbeing? These are common symptoms of an alcohol hangover🤧

📉🧬Most hangover symptoms are caused by depletion of Anti-Diuretic Hormone (ADH). “Anti-Diuretic” means “don’t pee.” ADH functions to prevent dehydration by slowing urine output. Alcohol shuts off ADH. Without ADH, the body produces more urine than necessary, causing dehydration💦

📈🐡During a hangover, ADH function is gradually restored, causing water retention as the body recovers from dehydration. An alcohol hangover’s severity is directly proportional to the amount of ADH in the body. The more alcohol consumed, the less the ADH in the body, so the more severe the hangover symptoms😬

🍹🤢Hangover symptoms, such as nausea and diarrhea, are caused by a disruption of hormonal signaling. Alcohol and viral infections alter the same pathway in the body🦠

🍺💓Alcohol hangovers also cause an overall increase in cardiac work. Hangovers are associated with increased heart rate and blood pressure💔

🥃🍷Ever wondered why some hangovers seem to differ from one another? Hangover symptoms depend on the type of alcohol that was consumed. The severity and frequency of hangovers are increased when the drink contains congeners, a byproduct of the alcohol production process. Drinks such as red wine, whiskey, añejo tequila and other dark liquors contain congeners, and may cause more severe hangovers. Clear liquors, including rum, vodka, and gin do not contain congeners🍸

🍐🥭Some natural foods are able to help the body recover from alcohol symptoms. In a human study, korean pears were shown to decrease hangover severity by up to 21%. Mangoes can also alleviate hangover symptoms by speeding up the body’s metabolism of alcohol🏃

💊😎Advil (Ibuprofen) may also help aid headache and pain-related symptoms, but Tylenol (Acetaminophen) can lengthen hangover symptoms due to added stress on the liver🤯