How to avoid a hangover this festive season ...

Ciara McDonnell finds out how to handle the party season without the painful post-drinking aftermath.

Sat, 28 Nov, 2015 - 00:00

Ciara McDonnell

IN New York an IV hangover treatment promises to sort out even the most vicious of hangovers in just 45 minutes.

Been up all night? Step into Hangover Heaven, an air-conditioned bus-hospital manned by doctors in scrubs who will take you in your most delicate state and pump you full of hydration and vitamins.

On this side of the Atlantic, Dr Peter Prendergast, medical director of Venus Medical in Dublin, is offering a pioneering IV recovering infusions at his clinic, called REVIV. So, how does it work?

“The REVIV recovery infusions quickly cure hangovers by alleviating headache, nausea, and tiredness,” he says. “The ULTRAVIV recovery drip provides immediate rehydration with water and electrolytes, B vitamins for energy, and anti-inflammatories. It also alleviates nausea.

“The Royal Flush provides all the benefits of ULTRAVIV plus additional anti-inflammatories, extra vitamins, the powerful antioxidant glutathione and magnesium. As well as curing hangovers, REVIV recovery infusions are used for those who feel rundown after stress, illness, jet lag, or heavy work schedules.”

These quick-fix IVs come at a price, ranging from €199 up to €399 for the Royal Flush deluxe infusion.

REVIV began in America, but the treatments are becoming increasingly popular in Europe, according to Dr Prendergast.

“At Venus Medical, we have people traveling from all over Ireland to enjoy the REVIV experience. Popularity is increasing mostly through word of mouth because people love the feeling of wellness and the energy boost experienced.”

More than 40,000 REVIV treatments have been performed worldwide and Prendergast himself is an advocate of the infusion.

“The therapies are certainly becoming more popular and mainstream. I have benefited from the drips myself, and love them!”

With popularity growing constantly, Venus Medical have plans to roll out a REVIV Concierge service soon, where clients will be able to avail of the service in their own homes.

Has Dr Prendergast achieved the unimaginable? Can he actually cure a hangover?

Jim Harty, a GP in Blackrock Hall Primary Care Centre in Cork, says there may not be a way to avoid the inevitable.

“Unfortunately, a systematic review published in the British Medical Journal in 2005 does not bear good news.

A review of eight randomised controlled trials revealed that there was no convincing evidence for any conventional or complementary interventions for the prevention or treatment of a hangover.”

But, there may be a correlation between what you drink and how bad you feel the next day.

“Some research indicates that certain drinks are worse than others with regard to causing hangovers”, says Dr Harty.

“Congeners (substances other than alcohol created during the fermentation process) are present in higher levels in darker drinks as they help to give the drink its deep colour. These substances can cause a more intense hangover and are present in commonly consumed drinks like red wine, dark rum, bourbon and brandy.”

As you are drinking your pale cocktails this month, don’t forget to slurp some water along with it. Chasing each alcoholic drink with a glass of still or sparkling water is a surefire way to avoid feeling like death the next day.

Not only will you drink less, but also you’ll find yourself feeling well the next day as a result of all that lovely water.

Learning to love your liver is one of the most important things to champion during this party marathon. It’s your liver that takes the brunt of all that indulgence, because one of its most important jobs is to clear the blood of alcohol, bacteria and chemicals that can be harmful the body. It detoxifies in two stages: first by converting chemicals to less toxic ones and secondly where it makes chemicals water-soluble.

To help aid it on its way, try to eat some brightly-coloured vegetables like beetroot and carrots which are high in antioxidants and will have a cleansing effect on your liver.

Beetroot is also high in folic acid, which is thought to help to detoxify the liver.

And if you don’t have time to cook, carrots and beetroot make a delicious juice.

Louise Reynolds from the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute says without doubt, prevention is key to avoiding a hangover. She recommends managing your alcohol intake no matter what the situation as a means of staying healthy.

“Plan in advance”, she says. “Think about where you are going, who you will be with and how much you are going to drink. Always eat before or while you are drinking. Eating slows down your drinking pace and fills you up”.

There are a host of natural preventative measures on the shelves that promise to whisk away the whiff of a hangover.

Alcohol depletes vitamins in the body. B vitamins are responsible for many metabolic processes of the body — the liver detox pathways rely on these vitamins to detox effectively.

Many swear by Milk Thistle, which is thought to help the body eliminate toxins from the liver. Take a tablet before bed and allow your body to do the rest.

Homeopath Emily Rainsford Ryan recommends Nux Vomica for those dealing with a hangover.

“It is the first remedy I think of for someone with a hangover headache. Use it when your headache is worse when you cough or bend down, and headaches that aggravate when you move your eyes. It remedies feelings of nausea, heartburn and light sensitivity as well as feelings of irritation and tiredness.”

The most important advice when it comes to surviving the party season is to give your body time to recover.

According to drinkaware.ie, it has never been more important for drivers to be aware of their own limits the morning after a night out. As of October 27, 2011, the legal blood alcohol limit is now 50mg per 100ml of blood while professional and learner drivers face a ‘virtually zero’ rate of 20mg per 100ml of blood.

“Even if you haven’t had a drink since last night, you may still be unfit to drive,” they caution. “Your body gets rid of roughly one standard drink per hour. No amount of black coffee or cold showers or even a full Irish can speed up your body’s ability to eliminate alcohol (although you might feel better)”.

From IV drips to alternating each alcoholic drink with a soft one; can we speed through the hangover and come out the other side feeling great?

On this, Drinkaware.ie are clear: “There are literally thousands of hangover ‘cures’ out there, but the secret to sobering up is time. And nothing else.”