Learn these 5 useful tips to prevent hangover effectively.

Key points

1. Drink Plenty of Water Before You Drink!
2. Don’t Drink With An Empty Stomach. 
3. Avoid Drinks with High in Congeners. 
4. Champaign? No Thanks!
5. Supplements

Don’t reach for the hair of the dog just yet! Having fun sometimes means more than just a glass of wine. From Screwdriver to Moscow mule, there are thousands of other delicious and creative drinks out there for you to try. Drinking responsibly is crucial, but having hangovers does not necessarily mean that you drank irresponsibly. Hangovers suck.  

Hangovers include various symptoms including headaches, nausea, dehydration, lack of sleep, exhaustion, vomiting, and more. The fear of the misery you will have to face the next morning prevents you from having fun with your friends and family. So our team listed 5 best ways to prevent hangovers. 

1. Drink plenty of water before you drink.

Staying hydrated is really important. Did you notice that you are going to the bathroom a lot more often than usual when drinking? You might think it's probably because you have been drinking (liquid). In fact the brain generates a hormone that keeps your kidney from making too much urine. However when alcohol is introduced to the body, your brain does not interfere as much. Therefore, your body is making urine more than it should be which can cause dehydration as you will continue to lose “water”. 

Also another well-known study indicates that the more dehydrated you are, the more your blood alcohol concentration goes up. To put this simply, this means that you will likely get more drunk if your body does not have enough water. So it is always smart to drink plenty of water before you start drinking. Here’s a side tip, try drinking one glass of water per each alcoholic drink. 

2. Don’t drink if you have not eaten anything. 

For those who are on a diet and think drinking with an empty stomach helps you lose weight, that is an absolute no-no. Our body cannot store alcohol so the liver’s priority is to get rid of the toxic substance immediately. In order to do so, our body slows down its metabolism of fat and carbohydrate. This means if you eat food and drink alcohol, it is likely that the food you ate will turn into fat because it takes time to break down alcohol. That is why people who are overly cautious about weight think drinking alcohol with an empty stomach can help them maintain the ideal body fat level. However, if you drink with an empty stomach, this allows alcohol to be absorbed to your body system much more quickly which can cause various hangover symptoms like vomiting and stomach ache. Always eat healthy food that contains enough proteins and carbs as it will have less harsh impact to your body when alcohol is introduced. 

3. Avoid drinks that contain a lot of congeners.

Congeners are one of the toxic chemicals that include methanol, isopentanol, and acetone.  According to a study, methanol, a common congener, has a high correlation with hangover symptoms. Usually darker drinks like red wine, whiskey, cognac, and especially bourbon whiskey contain much more congeners than those of lighter counterparts like vodka or soju. Another research shows that a higher concentration of congeners lead to various hangover symptoms like nausea, headache, and vomiting. You can learn more about what causes these symptoms here: headache | vomiting. Therefore, choosing less-congeners-option may help you prevent severe hangovers. 

4. Avoid carbonation.

Imagine you are mixing a carbonated drink with alcohol like Jack and coke or Jagermeister with Red Bull. As mentioned above, mixing only exacerbates the possible hangover symptoms, but carbonated drinks are also known to be absorbed more quickly according to a research. So if you are mixing alcoholic beverages with carbonated drinks, this can further add burden to your stomach and increase the chance of hangovers the next morning. 

5. Take natural supplements - the best hangover cure.

There are many hangover remedies tips and hangover cure products out there on the market, but finding the right one may be tricky. Some products focus on hydration and vitamins, while others focus on Dihydromyricetin, known as DHM. But our team of Eastern Medicine doctors found that one or two ingredients are not enough to prevent hangovers. The sound of a violin in an orchestra plays a beautiful melody, but the entire orchestra plays the masterpiece. Even with natural herbs and ingredients, an effective formulation is required to maximize their synergistic components. Rest assured that we made this easy for you. Check out Iluna that contains all natural 14 medical grade herbs to prevent hangovers. Our formulation is based on both medical studies and Traditional Eastern Medicine. Learn how Iluna is the easiest and the best way to cure and prevent hangovers.