11 best hangover cures

Review of the best according to the editorial board. On the selection criteria. This material is subjective and does not constitute advertising and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.

The state of a hangover refers to that unpleasant, but always quite expected situation, provoked by excessive consumption of alcohol, from which a person wants to get rid of as soon as possible. And the point is not that being hungover is bad, everyone knows that time heals (by the way, this proverb should be made the motto of treating hangover syndrome).

Much worse is the situation that usually the state of a morning hangover coincides with an urgent need to be active, get involved in work, appear in front of a team, a girl or a boss, as you like. And as usual, demand creates supply. In modern pharmacies, a very large number of various drugs for relieving hangover syndrome have appeared. Many of them have quite understandable names, such as Antipohmelin, Alkoklin, DrinkOFF, Arise, Guten Morgen, Morning Care. Others carry meaningless names: Zorex, Zinal pro, and others.

However, for centuries, there have been proven ways to reduce the unpleasant symptoms of a hangover among the people, and they are also popular and are still used today. Is it worth buying drugs in pharmacies, are they drugs, do they relieve hangover symptoms, and if not, what means should be used? But first of all, to make it clear, it is necessary to briefly explain what needs to be dealt with.

What is a hangover?

The hangover from wine and beer has been known to mankind for thousands of years, and in recent centuries it became possible to consume strong alcohol, after the Arabs invented a method of distillation to obtain wine alcohol.

In the human body, the liver processes ethyl alcohol (more precisely, the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase), oxidizes it to carbon dioxide, which is eventually released by the lungs and water. But, unfortunately, this is a multistage process, and includes the production of an intermediate product of ethanol metabolism – the so-called acetaldehyde, or acetaldehyde. This is a highly toxic poison, it is he who is released with the exhaled air, creating an 'amber' in a person who has drunk hard the day before – a well-known fume. The accumulation of under-oxidized ethanol products in the blood causes all the symptoms of a hangover – trembling in the hands, tachycardia, interruptions in the work of the heart, headache, the feeling of 'cats in the mouth', nausea and all the other delights of the hangover syndrome.

In addition to acetaldehyde, high-alcohol alcohols are involved in the hangover: butyl, amyl, isoamyl alcohols, which are called fusel oils, and in the process of distillation of the mash are called 'tails' by moonshiners.

Therefore, the whole treatment of hangover syndrome comes down to two simple ways: to quickly remove the accumulated acetaldehyde and 'booze' from the body, strengthening the kidneys, or to try to reduce unpleasant symptoms by using symptomatic agents. There are no other ways. That is, you can equate the treatment of a hangover and the treatment of acute acetaldehyde poisoning.

At the beginning of the rating, we will talk about the use of drugs that have a proven mechanism of action, and help either reduce the period of a hangover, or alleviate the symptoms of this condition. Then, perhaps the most desirable ways will be considered: methods of influencing hangover without the use of drugs. Finally, further we will talk about those techniques and medicines, numerous additives, the use of which will only help empty your wallet, but, at best, will not give any advantages over the more affordable methods described above.

Rating of the best hangover remedies

Nomination	a place	Name of product	rating
The best medications for relieving hangover symptoms	1	Vitamin C, ascorbic acid	4.9
	2	B vitamins – thiamine (B1)	4.8
	3	Sedalgin plus	4.8
	4	Anaprilin, Obzidan (propranolol)	4.8
	5	Diuver, Britomar, Lotonel, Trigrim (torasemide)	4.7
The best non-drug hangover cures	1	Liquid	5.0
	2	Sauna and contrast shower	4.9
	3	Exercise stress	4.9
Anti-rating – questionable ways to relieve hangover symptoms	1	Sorbents	2.0
	2	Cerucal, Eglonil, metoclopramide, antiemetics	2.0
	3	Hangover Supplements	2.0

The best medications for relieving hangover symptoms

All drugs listed in this group of ratings belong to different groups of drugs, and they have numerous analogues. But it should be warned that it is quite dangerous to turn to drugs against the background of a hangover. Against the background of acetaldehyde poisoning, there is a high risk of atrial fibrillation, in older people – an attack of coronary heart disease and the possibility of developing a heart attack, in patients suffering from chronic alcoholism, acute pancreatitis may develop.

In general, side effects are more common with a hangover. Therefore, it is advisable to use medications as a last resort, and be sure to first consult a doctor. But let's start with the safest ones.

Vitamin C, ascorbic acid

Rating: 4.9

Ascorbic acid can be used together with glucose, of course, for those patients who do not have diabetes, and such tablets are sold in pharmacies. Ascorbic acid with glucose, perhaps, is one of the cheapest and most 'tasty' remedies. So, 20 tablets with a dosage of 100 mg can be bought for 36 rubles, and a package of 10 tablets – for only 4 rubles. This product is produced by a large number of domestic pharmaceutical companies. It is advisable to take ascorbic acid, or vitamin C, for an adult in a state of hangover, 2-3 tablets, but not more than 10 tablets per day.

Advantages and disadvantages

Ascorbic acid is an adjunct treatment for hangover syndrome, its action is to strengthen and restore the liver. Unlike numerous dietary supplements, which are expensive and have an unproven mechanism of action, ascorbic acid is involved in the work of cytochrome p450, which is one of the main structures in hepatocytes, or liver cells that detoxify ethanol. Therefore, the timely intake of ascorbic acid, especially with regular alcohol consumption, will reduce the severity of the hangover syndrome.

B vitamins – thiamine (B1)

Rating: 4.9

There is a very serious complication of alcoholism called Wernicke's encephalopathy. In this case, delirium develops, the patient quickly falls into a coma, and dies. Survivors are treated for a long time in the intensive care unit. This complication is also called acute hemorrhagic encephalitis. In this case, the structures of the middle and medulla oblongata are affected, punctate hemorrhages develop due to vascular perforation, and the reason is a deficiency of vitamin B1, or thiamine. After all, it is thiamine that is consumed in increased quantities against the background of frequent alcohol consumption. But even a cultured and moderate drinker may be deficient in thiamine.

You can buy vitamin B1 either in ampoules or in tablets. In principle, it is quite possible to drink the content of one ampoule, having previously dissolved it in water. Thiamine bromide tablets, or thiamine chloride solution, are very inexpensive, produced by a large number of pharmaceutical companies, and sold in every pharmacy. It is necessary to take it with frequent alcohol consumption, after eating, for adults for preventive purposes – 5-10 mg per day, but no more than 3 times a day for 3 days.

Advantages and disadvantages

Again, as in the case of ascorbic acid, through the use of thiamine, we take care of replenishing its amount, since it is intensively consumed against the background of drinking alcohol. No relief or change in well-being associated with the use of thiamine can be expected. But, nevertheless, this is a measure that is necessary to normalize the metabolism, undermined by the use of ethanol.

It should be especially emphasized that thiamine is needed in pure form, or in ampoules, or in the form of pills and tablets containing a single vitamin. All multivitamin complexes, including expensive ones, which contain, in addition to vitamins of various names, also minerals and trace elements, will be ineffective. A liver that has been hit by alcohol needs thiamine.

Let's move on to a group of medicines that really help to reduce the symptoms of alcohol intoxication and remove acetaldehyde from the body. These are various non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, as well as means for increasing urine output, or diuretics.

Sedalgin plus

Rating: 4.8

Sedalgin plus is a combination product that contains caffeine, metamizole sodium, or analgin, and thiamine. This drug is good for headaches that are caused by a hangover syndrome, and contributes to an overall improvement in well-being. Due to the caffeine contained in it, the blood supply to the brain and its cortex improves, physical and mental performance increases, and drowsiness decreases. Thiamine, or vitamin B1, the considered facets, help to improve the tolerance of ethyl alcohol by the nervous tissue, and also take part in many metabolic processes that help remove alcohol and its decay products from the body. Sedalgin plus is produced by the pharmaceutical company Balkanpharma Bulgaria, one pack of 10 tablets can be purchased for 83 rubles.

It is advisable to use the drug after meals, one tablet at a time, no more than 3 times, but you should try to take the tablets before lunch, since the drug contains a small dose of caffeine. In any case, an adult should take no more than 6 tablets per day.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantage of Sedalgin is the combined effect, 'built-in' in the vitamin B1 composition, a significant reduction in headache, and an increase in overall performance. It should be used if and only if, with a hangover syndrome, it is impossible to lie down and sleep, and you need, alas, to be included in an active rhythm of life. In the event that there is an opportunity to lie down on this day, then you do not need to take this remedy, since caffeine will help revitalize the body.

Anaprilin, Obzidan (propranolol)

Rating: 4.8

Anaprilin belongs to cardiac drugs, and its role is to reduce the excitability of the heart muscle, reduce its contractility, and save oxygen. Anaprilin lowers blood pressure, and one of its most important effects is to slow down the heart rate. Anaprilin is produced by many different domestic pharmaceutical companies; it is a widespread and inexpensive drug. So, a package of 50 tablets with a dosage of 10 mg costs only 12 rubles.

Indications for taking Anaprilin in a state of a hangover are a frantic and often pounding heart, a feeling of heat and flushing of the skin of the face, crimson cheeks, a state when you want to breathe fresh air, as well as a rise in blood pressure against the background of a hangover. Anaprilin will help reduce blood pressure, decrease heart rate, and eliminate the unpleasant symptoms of hot flashes. It is enough to take the remedy one 10 mg tablet once. In the event that there is an increase in blood pressure, then you can double the dosage and take 20 mg of anaprilin.

Advantages and disadvantages

This drug was ranked as the cheapest of all beta-blockers, but by no means the safest. There are safer medicines from the same group, for example, Concor. As for contraindications, even with the above complaints with a hangover, it should not be taken in patients with cardiac pathology – sinus bradycardia, hypotension, patients with bronchial asthma, and those prone to bronchospasm, people suffering from diabetes.

Diuver, Britomar, Lotonel, Trigrim (torasemide)

Rating: 4.7

Diuretics are a powerful means of rapidly reducing hangover syndrome by accelerating the elimination of acetaldehyde from the body. One of the modern diuretic drugs is torasemide, or Diuver. When Diuver is prescribed, the maximum diuretic effect develops, on average, after 2.5 hours. Compared to furosemide, it is less conducive to the elimination of potassium from the body, but it works longer and more strongly. Diuver is produced by the Croatian pharmaceutical company Pliva, and 20 tablets with a dosage of 5 mg cost 260 rubles.

The diuretic effect of taking one Diuver pill can last even up to 18 hours, so you need to plan your hangover day taking into account the duration of the diuretic action. To treat a hangover, it is enough to take one 5 mg tablet in the morning.

Advantages and disadvantages

In the right hands, diuretics that activate kidney function are powerful agents for accelerating hangover resolution in a matter of hours. But at the same time, it is imperative to take into account the side effects of diuretics, the possibility of excreting useful potassium ions from the body and the risk of developing muscle cramps and cardiac arrhythmias, the need to be able to compensate for the excretion of these substances from the body, and also to provide the patient with increased fluid intake so as not to cause dehydration. Then, taking into account all indications and contraindications, short-term therapy of hangover syndrome with diuretics can be used.

It is advisable to rest quietly after taking it and not overload. You will often run to the toilet, but you must remember that while taking diuretics, if you have a tendency to low blood pressure, you can get fainting. In order to prevent cramps of the calf muscles, together with a tablet of torasemide, you can take two tablets of Panangin, or Asparkam. But in the event that the age is over 40 years old, there are problems with blood pressure, or heart rhythm disturbances, then it is better not to take risks and do without the use of diuretics, without a doctor's prescription.

The best non-drug hangover cures

All drugs for the treatment of hangover syndrome, even those as innocent as ascorbic acid, can have side effects and contraindications. Methods of non-drug influence on a hangover can also not be recommended for everyone. But at the same time, no matter how old they are, they do not additionally burden the liver with the processing of various chemicals, and practically do not require any financial costs. Consider the most popular folk methods included in the rating.

Liquid

Rating: 5.0

The above drug from the group of highly effective diuretics will only work well if a lot of water is fed 'into the pipe' from one end. If liquid does not enter the body, then taking diuretics will lead to dehydration, thickening of the blood, and if used too often, there may be a risk of thrombosis. Therefore, before prescribing diuretics for yourself with a hangover syndrome, you need to take good care of your drinking regimen, and drink as much fluids as possible.

Typically, a healthy, adult experiencing hangover symptoms should consume about one liter, or 5 glasses of fluid, every hour. This is a fairly moderate fluid load, which, in the end, will exceed the diuresis, and the result of a properly done work will be, in an hour and a half to two hours, a desire to go to the toilet for little need. In the event that the patient has healthy kidneys, and the hangover syndrome is not very pronounced, then such a water load is completely safe, and it may well do without prescribing diuretics.

What drink?

What exactly to use? There are many opinions on this matter. But if you think about it, then, most likely, you can recommend ordinary water, dried fruit and rosehip compote with vitamin C, a large amount of weak warm chicken broth, the reception of which can be alternated with two or three glasses of cucumber or cabbage pickle.

Some people drink large amounts of green tea with lemon, kefir, ayran, various milkshakes and egg shakes, spicy red pepper shakes, and so on. Why would it hurt? It should be noted that green tea contains a lot of caffeine, and excessive toning in a hangover can result in a significant increase in blood pressure. Lactic acid products can contain 1% alcohol in their composition, therefore, persons who use kefir can be considered very lightly intoxicated. At the same time, the load on the digestive tract organs in several liters of kefir can cause intestinal upset even in a healthy person.

Chicken broth is very useful for those who tolerate it well. Firstly, against the background of the existing lack of appetite in case of a hangover, it is a food substitute, and gives satiety. And secondly, no one canceled the advice to eat well also with a hangover syndrome. Therefore, chicken broth has always been, is and will be in good demand, especially salted in moderation.

As for the brine, this ancient folk method is based on replenishing the electrolyte deficiency in the blood plasma. It is known that sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium, chlorine and other simple elements belong to electrolytes. Taking a large amount of alcohol causes a significant imbalance in electrolytes, a shift in the acid-base balance to the acidic side, so drinking brine with a hangover is not only useful, but also pleasant. The only exception is that in no case should you drink the marinade. Firstly, it will only aggravate the acidification of the body, at a time when it is necessary to alkalize it, and secondly, it can cause a severe attack of biliary colic and acute pancreatitis.

Advantages and disadvantages

It is not recommended to load oneself with excessive fluid in patients with edema, impaired renal function, heart failure, and high pressure in the pulmonary artery (cor pulmonale). This group also includes hypertensive patients, pregnant women, and persons with epilepsy. The fact that pregnant women and those with epilepsy should never drink alcohol at all, we will modestly keep silent. Also, the disadvantage is the elementary tediousness of this activity, drinking by force, attachment to the toilet for many hours.

But this is an effective and good way, practically inexpensive, especially in the case of using hot water, diluted with jam, and in some cases, and replacing food intake (broth). In general, forcing the water load can be considered the main method of treating not only a hangover, but also acute alcohol intoxication in a hospital, the only difference is that a large amount of fluid is administered intravenously there, and in the case of alcoholic coma, diuresis is additionally forced and the technology of peritoneal dialysis is used.

Sauna and contrast shower

Rating: 4.9

The Russian bath, as well as the Finnish sauna, is the third whale on which the correct treatment of hangover syndrome is worth, but only in a healthy person. In order for the bath procedures to be beneficial, it is necessary to combine them with the intake of mineral water, weak tea, compotes, herbal infusions, fruit drinks, but by no means beer, otherwise the treatment of the hangover syndrome will turn into a long binge.

Bath procedures connect the largest and most massive human organ to detoxification – his skin, its ability to sweat. After being in the steam room, a person's body temperature rises physiologically, hyperthermia occurs, the number of heart contractions increases, and profuse sweat is released, containing a large amount of toxins. After a person sweats, an urgent need to rinse, or swim in the pool. It is strictly forbidden to leave sweat and dry out, since there is abundant evidence that it is absorbed back together with toxins.

Advantages and disadvantages

The advantages of the bath are a pleasant pastime, alternating temperature loads with dousing with cold water (vascular gymnastics), as well as the rate of elimination of toxins. Combined with a forced intake of fluids, 3-4 hours of bath procedures can do a miracle and completely put a person in order after a stormy evening.

But be sure to remember that physical activity in the bath is completely unnecessary. Treatment of hangover does not involve waving a broom, quite calm, but repeated sweating with periodic rinsing and drinking fluids. In the same case, if there is arterial hypertension, heart rhythm disturbances, angina pectoris or heart attack in history, shortness of breath and excess weight – it is better not to use this method.

If there is no way to go to the bathhouse, you can limit yourself to a contrast shower. Baths, especially hot ones, are contraindicated for a hangover, as they can cause complications in the heart. You must first use a warm shower, then a cool one, then make it hot for a few seconds, and then make it even colder. Such a periodic narrowing or expansion of the vessels of the skin will cause a significant flow of blood to it from the internal organs, including from the liver, from the place of deposition, and the expansion of the capillary vessels of the skin.

At this moment, it is necessary to get out of the shower, rub intensively with a shaggy and hard towel in order to additionally cause redness of the skin and blood flow to its depth. This will make the sweat glands work, and if, after such a shower, you wrap yourself in a warm robe and drink a hot rosehip infusion, then this will also be a good, physiological way to remove acetaldehyde from the body.

Exercise stress

Rating: 4.9

This method is the most paradoxical, but together with the bath – the most effective. Bicycling, jogging, and wood cutting while deeply hungover is perhaps the most unbearable thing in nature. It is with fear and the inability to perform physical activity that most absenteeism is associated with people who are far from drunken drunkards. They're just hungover and can't do anything. But in the event that you overpower yourself and find within two or three hours the strength for physical labor in combination with water load, then the head will become clear, the eyes will stop being red, and in the afternoon most people already feel more or less bearable , of course, if you do not repeat yesterday's 'exploits'.

Anti-rating – questionable ways to relieve hangover symptoms

The rating lists undoubtedly reliable and proven treatments for hangover. They all boil down to accelerating the elimination of harmful substances from the body, or to symptomatic treatment. The methods of excretion are different, but they are all based on elementary physics and chemistry. It:

1. water load, which increases diuresis;
2. forcing diuresis with diuretics;
3. removal of harmful substances through the skin;
4. this is intense physical work that accelerates the basal metabolism;
5. a medicine that relieves unpleasant symptoms without speeding up or removing anything.

But on the Internet there are a huge number of 'extremely effective' drugs, which, according to manufacturers, not only completely relieve a person of a hangover, but also allegedly taken the day before the planned party, allow you to absolutely not get drunk, get behind the wheel in the morning, and so on. We will not talk about all the absurdity, and even inadmissibility of these statements. We list only those decent remedies that do not make sense to use with a hangover syndrome. We will also briefly talk about those supplements that, alas, do not deserve the price for which they are sold.

Sorbents

Rating: 2.0

There are a large number of sorbents, ranging from activated carbon to Polysorb-MP and Enterosgel. On many sites about the treatment of alcohol intoxication and hangovers, you can read that sorbents should be used first. This is nothing more than a half-truth.

In the event that we are talking about alcohol intoxication, about alcohol poisoning, about a state of intoxication, then it is necessary to remove all residues of ethyl alcohol from the gastrointestinal tract. And then it is shown, in emergency cases, when the patient is unconscious, repeated gastric lavage, and if he is conscious and realizes his intoxication, then it is recommended to give sorbents.

But a hangover and drunkenness are different states, with a hangover there is no alcohol left in the intestines, it has long been absorbed into the bloodstream, and processed in the liver – partially completely, and partially not. Sorbents have nothing to do with blood purification, and therefore they are completely useless in hangover.

Cerucal, Eglonil, metoclopramide, antiemetics

Rating: 2.0

Alas, nausea and even vomiting sometimes accompanies the hangover syndrome. This is rare, but if it does, it usually ends with a single vomiting and minor episodes of nausea. In the same case, if vomiting is strong and frequent, vomiting is repeated, then this already speaks not of a hangover syndrome, but of poisoning with alcohol substitutes, an attack of acute alcoholic pancreatitis, cholecystitis, and other pathology when urgent medical attention is required. But even if you vomit and vomit during a hangover, is it necessary to take anti-nausea and antiemetics?

There are a number of medications that suppress nausea, improve quality of life, and vomiting. They are used when nausea is an inevitable consequence of taking toxic drugs, for example, during chemotherapy in oncology. In this case, their intake is really indicated, since nausea is unproductive and cannot help the body in any way. But in the case of a hangover syndrome, nausea and vomiting will help cleanse both the stomach and intestines from the remnants of the feast soaked in alcohol. Therefore, in the case when a person is sick and vomiting during a hangover, this should not be prevented, but it should be encouraged. Therefore, such funds are not needed.

An inquisitive reader may ask a question: if it is necessary to remove the stagnant contents of the stomach soaked in alcohol, then why is it contraindicated and useless to take sorbents? Namely, because in the morning there is little alcohol in the stomach and intestines, but there is a lot of food. As a result, a significant amount of sorbents will be neutralized by this mass and will not be able to absorb alcohol residues.

Hangover Supplements

Rating: 2.0

He runs to the catcher and the beast, and demand creates supply. Here is just a small list of such drugs that belong to dietary supplements: Alekol, DrinkOFF, Zorex (Zorex), Antipohmelin, Morning Care, Alkoklin, Zenalk Zinal pro.

For example, the domestic remedy Zorex contains unitiol and calcium pantothenate. As is known from combat chemistry and toxicology, unitiol effectively fights a special group of poisons, which include heavy metal compounds. These poisons block special sulfur-containing groups called sulfhydryl, or thiol (SH). As a result, the activity of some groups of enzymes is disrupted. But acetaldehyde, which provides all the hangover symptoms, is in no way a thiol compound. If you add one oxygen atom to acetaldehyde, it turns into acetic acid. Its formula is extremely simple, like this: CH3-SON. This is ethanal, ethane, or acetaldehyde.

And for its successful utilization you need an enzyme called acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. But, unfortunately, this enzyme cannot be made to work when taken in a pill. There are no such pills. But on the other hand, there are a number of drugs for alcoholism that are able to block this enzyme, due to which hangover syndromes become mandatory and replace intoxication. This is a remedy for the treatment of alcoholism, which discourages patients from craving the green serpent. These include drugs such as Teturam, Antabuse, Disulfiram, Lidevin, Esperal and all other drugs that make alcohol unpleasant and very dangerous.

Therefore, zorax will be ineffective in alcohol intoxication for a hangover, since there is no point of application for unitiol. The same applies to most dietary supplements, which contain various imported medicinal plants, often exotic, which also do not contribute to the elimination of alcohol breakdown products from the body. Also, you should not drink an aphrodisiac that increases the work of the heart, you should not drink coffee, and even more so from various Riga balsams, which activate, but contain alcohol. Otherwise, the treatment of the hangover syndrome turns into repeated alcohol intoxication. It is much more useful to drink effervescent aspirin, which in this case will show a non-febrifugal, analgesic effect, and also promotes blood thinning, since alcohol draws water from the blood into the tissues, and it worsens its rheological qualities, becomes thicker.

Finally, in conclusion, it must be said that it is in the state of a hangover that various severe cardiovascular accidents occur quite often in men over 40. If you feel that there are interruptions in the heart area, severe chest pain radiating to the left arm, under the left shoulder blade, then you should not waste time on self-treatment of a hangover, even with the help of old proven methods, but call an ambulance.

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Attention! This rating is subjective and does not constitute an advertisement and does not serve as a purchase guide. Before buying, you need to consult with a specialist.