Anatomy of a Hangover

This episode covers all things hangover: why they happen, how to prevent them, and what to do if you have one. 

Transcript

Marissa: Welcome to the Last Call Podcast. My name is marissa whitaker, and I'm the prevention educator at SUNY Cortland.

Sarah: And my name is Sarah magowan. I'm the assistant Director of Student Health and Wellness at Ononadaga Community College. Our jobs are to educate students about potential risks associated with substance use.

Marissa: We approach substance use from a neutral stance, and our episodes are rooted in public health with a focus on science and harm reduction.

Sarah: Welcome back to the Last Call Podcast. So today is our hangover episode. So today we are doing a deep dive into all things hangover. So the anatomy of a hangover. So basically breaking down what it is I'm talking about, how to prevent one, and then how you can help if you do find yourself with a hangover. So, marissa, do you want to kick it off?

Marissa: For us today, to oversimplify a hangover is just a case of ethanol poisoning, which in turn disrupts a number of metabolic processes throughout the body. So just like we all absorb alcohol differently, we can experience hangovers differently. So some common symptoms, so I've heard, are headache, fatigue, muscle aches and weakness, being thirsty, sometimes, getting dizzy, sometimes even depression and anxiety. Definitely some sensitivity to light and sound, and also some memory and concentration problems.

Sarah: Also, if you're wondering if hangovers get worse as you get older, they do.

Marissa: I wouldn't know. So what's kind of interesting about hangovers is that they're really subjective, meaning that they're different from person to person. So that makes pinpointing the science of a hangover kind of tricky. So it's hard to have an objective measure. What defines a hangover and data is oftentimes self reported. What we do know is that a combination of dehydration, low blood sugar and an imbalance of electrolytes and other chemicals in the brain and body are the common denominators. So let's just start at the top of the body with our heads. Alcohol is a diuretic, which means it increases the production of urine. Alcohol consumption combined with frequent urination causes the body to become dehydrated. So, not to nerd out for a second, but the blood vessels in the brain go from expanding while we're drinking to constricting when we're recovering from alcohol consumption, and that causes people to experience pressure and a pounding headache.

Sarah: Interesting about that is, like in talking with students, sometimes they'll say once they break the seal, that's good, because then they feel like they're peeing out alcohol more quickly. But to be honest, it doesn't matter how many times you're peeing in an hour, your liver can only process one standard drink per hour. So in your mind, don't equate having to go to the bathroom more with getting rid of alcohol more quickly, because those two do not drive.

Marissa: Also, in the brain, you might have a little bit of a brain fog, maybe feeling a little bit irritable. That's also due to brain inflammation and distress. There's our heads. So let's move down a little bit to our stomachs. Alcohol increases stomach acid and inflammation and irritates the lining of the stomach. So some people try to combat this by having a case of the drunk munchies. So some research suggests that alcohol can stimulate nerve cells in the hypothalamus, which actually increases appetite, almost tricking your brain into feeling intense hunger. And then fast forwarding a little bit to the morning after. We're getting a little messy, but diarrhea can be a side effect of diuretics. But alcohol also slows down the absorption of liquids in your bowels. Beer tends to have more carbs than other sources of alcohol, and some people have a problem breaking this down. I think the scientific term for this is the beer ships.

Sarah: That's what it's called?

Marissa: Yes, in textbooks, that's what it's called. But you throw in sugary mixers and then the pizza your body was telling you that you needed at 02:00 A.m., that can be a dicey situation. And then on the opposite end of that spectrum, for some people, alcohol can cause constipation. So no matter how you're looking at it, it's a literal crapshoot. So now that we've covered the actual body, let's talk a little bit about sleep. So alcohol prevents you from reaching the deeper stages of sleep, and that can make sense why sleep has an impact on a hangover, why you feel tired the next day because you're having to pee every few hours, or potentially throw up if you've had too much to drink.

Sarah: Well, and it's interesting about that, marissa, because I've had people say to me, well, when I drink, I can fall asleep a lot more quickly than when I don't drink. And that might be the case, but similar to cannabis, you're not getting good quality sleep when you're drinking. Therefore, when you wake up, it doesn't matter if you went to bed at midnight and woke up at noon, you didn't get good quality sleep, so you're still going to feel tired.

Marissa: Exactly. Falling asleep quickly does not equate to a good night's sleep. Something else just to be aware of, and Sarah is going to talk about this more in a moment. But mixing alcohol with any other substance so cannabis, nicotine, cigarettes, stimulants like cocaine, adderall, any other drugs that's only going to exacerbate the symptoms there's? Not really. Take one to help balance out the other. Tell me a little bit, Sarah. How does someone prevent getting a hangover?

Sarah: Absolutely. So there's a bunch of different things you can do, and some of it comes down to cutting down or cutting back, which we've talked about quite a bit, I feel like, the last year. But I think one of the most important things to remember is that you really should be dealing with what's going on in your life before you start drinking. So having a night out as a stress reliever is usually never going to equate to a good night. So we've talked about the hulk before. You never want to drink if you're hungry, angry, lonely or tired. That's because people end up consuming a lot more than they usually would if they were in a great mood. So it's really important that you have a couple of different ways to deal with stress or things that are going on in your life that you can turn to versus going out, and that's how you're coping with your stress.

Marissa: But also going out to celebrate might feel like it starts with a good vibe, but when you're trying to keep that momentum going, also drinking to celebrate, you can unintentionally drink more than you intended as well.

Sarah: Yeah, absolutely. And how many celebrations can you have? Like you're celebrating that your cat turned one by going out to a bar crawl. Does that really? So going along with that, marissa, back to the halt. Make sure that you eat before you drink. And I don't mean a couple of crackers as you're pounding your first drink of the night. Eat a substantial meal with carbohydrates, good fats protein that will keep you from absorbing alcohol more quickly and hopefully then in turn will help you keep your blood alcohol content at a sustainable level. Going with that, make sure you space out your drinks. So like we kind of talked about at the beginning, your liver can only process one standard drink per hour. So no matter how great of a drinker that you think you are, spacing out your drinks will ensure that your liver has enough time to process each drink that you're consuming. Now, going along with that, it's important to keep track of how much you're drinking so that you're aware, but also measure out your drinks so, you know, again, master bartenders usually end up way over pouring. Even if you think you're eyeballing the perfect shot, can't guarantee that it is one shot. What else is really interesting about this is we've talked about how your blood alcohol content can continue to rise even after you've fallen asleep, if you've consumed a lot. But you can also wake up the next day and still have considerable amounts of alcohol in your system that can lead to a dwi. So the only way to prevent that is to know how many drinks you've had, how long it's been since you've had your last drink. And the only way to reasonably measure that, unless you have a breathalyzer, which not many people do, is to know how many standard drinks you've had, how long it's been, and even that isn't a guarantee because you could have consumed more than you thought. Anything to add to that, marissa?

Marissa: Yeah. So think about it this way. If you go to bed with, let's just say, like A, that's going to take you 7 hours for you to get back down to zero for your bac. So you go to bed at two in the morning with a zero point 14. You have class at 08:00 a.m., you're still going to be impaired when you're in class that day, even though you might feel like you're okay or say you had to drive to class, that could still be a dui. If you're driving with a .3, then throw in, like, zero tolerance law if you're under 21 driving with that, sometimes play that tape forward all the way what your numbers look like.

Sarah: And it's important to note that a lot of those measurements are based on a 150 pound man with a standard drink. So how many people are exactly that measurement of that sex and are consuming perfectly measured out standard drinks? Not everyone, right?

Marissa: And like your numbers, too, that might just be what your bac is. But if three drinks puts you over the limit where you don't feel like you're in control anymore, how you feel and what your bac don't always equal the same thing.

Sarah: Yeah, absolutely. That's really true. So, continuing on, it's important to try to avoid sugar and super sugary drink. So alcohol and sugar both cause inflammation, so mixing the two or even having one and then the other, kind of like you talked about moriss with the cravings after you finished drinking, and then you're like, yeah, it's a great idea for me to pound back two bags of ping size skittles. Not a recipe for a good time. Also, it's really important to make sure that you're continuously drinking water. So drink water before you're drinking, while you're drinking and then after you're drinking. So I'm not saying we've talked about this before. Pounding a whole gallon of water after you're done drinking for the night is not going to prevent a hangover and it's also not going to sober you up. It's good to get reasonable amounts of water, but you don't have to chuck a whole gallon and tell yourself that that's going to prevent you from having a hangover the next day.

Marissa: So if you're in a position where you're uncomfortable doing that, get extra ice in your drink, chew on the ice in between. No one's going to question how much, like, ice is in your cup, so just keep that in mind if you're out at the bar or something to ask for extra ice in your drink, because that's water, too.

Sarah: Yeah, absolutely. That makes a lot of sense, Mary. Also, we've talked about hydrating after you're done drinking for the night, but it's also okay to replace some of those electrolytes that you've lost through drinking with gatorade powerade, because those can help replace some electrolytes that you've gotten rid of through drinking alcohol. And then, like you talked about marissa, it's important not to mix your substances. So we always like to say stick to one or the other, because anything that you're adding on top of alcohol has the potential to amplify the effects, which would lead to amplified hangovers.

Marissa: So what would someone do, perhaps, if that ship has sailed in, they might be nursing a hangover. How can we speed up the process of getting better?

Sarah: Yeah, absolutely. And I'm sure a lot of people are thinking hair of the dog. So for those who don't know what that means is you're starting your day off the night after a night of heavy drinking with another alcoholic drink, because it's going to help decrease your symptoms of a hangover. So while that might sound appetizing, this is never a good idea. So what you're doing is just kicking the can down the road. If you have to start your day with an additional drink after a night of heavy drinking, then I think it's a good time to really think about your use and maybe come chat with someone about it and think about maybe cutting back.

Marissa: Also, the hair of the dog is total garbage anyway. Medical practitioners in the 1005 hundreds have you ever heard of this?

Sarah: No.

Marissa: Where it comes from is medical practitioners in the 1005 hundreds thought that you could cure rabies by drinking a potion with the hair of the dog that bit you. So I think that his folklore turned into, like, get rid of the hangover by drinking the next morning. But that was also going from, like, don't do that. If you have rabies, you need to get to the er. Don't be like finding some dog hair, some raccoon fur. That's not how it works. Similar with alcohol.

Sarah: Love it. So, yes, hair of the dog does not actually work. Additionally, something else you can do that may help with that tylenol and ibuprofen can help with headaches that could come from some of that blood vessel and brain irritation that we've talked about potentially help with some of the dehydration. But it's important to be careful with that because in high rates of consumption, that has been linked to liver issues. So always in moderation, something else you can do is eat some bland food. So if you've gotten sick before, sick the night before, or if you have a sensitive stomach after a negative heavy drinking, things like crackers, toast, sometimes antacids, can help if your stomach is not feeling the best. And then kind of like we've talked about, it's really important that you're rehydrating yourself because a lot of the hangover type symptoms are caused by dehydration of your body. So things like water, gatorade, power, aid pedialyte So any drinks that have electrolytes that are replacing some of the ones that you've lost during a night of heavy drinking can be very helpful. And then also it's important that if you've gone really hard, for example, like a longer, larger scale drinking event, you want to make sure that you're giving your liver time to recover. So while you might feel okay after drinking heavily, your liver can only detox so much. So it's really important to give yourself time for it to take a break. Taking a couple of days off from drinking after you've consumed a lot. Never heard.

Sarah: Okay, so the last thing you can do if you aren't super hungover and you're able to it's getting a little bit of exercise. So obviously if you're super hungover, you can't get out of bed.

Sarah: You've been puking all morning.

Sarah: Not something that you're going to want to do. You're not going to want to cross the workout. Just getting some cardio in, maybe some stretching just to kind of get your circulation moving and your body going can be helpful to get you out of that hangover fog.

Marissa: Even getting some fresh air, even if moving is the last thing on your list, just getting out and breathing some fresh air, like, no, that's not going to decrease your bac at all, but psychologically, you might feel a little bit better. So thanks for covering some ways that people can kind of remedy a hangover once that ship has sailed. Also covering some things we can do to maybe prevent a hangover in the first place. And maybe we should have started the episode with this, but the easiest way to prevent a hangover is not to drink. But again, if you are going to drink, having a little moderation, having some water in between, having something to eat, those are easy things that you can do to kind of mitigate some of the negative consequences of over consuming alcohol.

Sarah: Yeah, hangovers only come if you have over consumed. So obviously if you want to prevent one, you really hate hangovers and you don't like that feeling, don't drink.

Marissa: And thanks for joining us.

Sarah: See you next week. bye.