Cure a Hangover: Your St. Patrick's Day Survival Guide

When it comes to hangovers, it couldn’t be truer that prevention is, indeed, the best medicine. Everybody remembers that the day after St. Patrick’s Day, but many have trouble remembering it on this, the greenest of all holidays.

As he does every year, UC Irvine Health Department of Emergency Medicine Dr. Carl Schultz is bracing for an uptick of hospital-worthy hangovers this St. Patrick’s Day and weekend.

“Emergency physicians are used to this because people binge drink a lot anyway,” said Schultz. “On St. Patrick’s Day, it does it get a little a worse.”

Hangovers are directly tied to how much you drink and how fast you drink it, so the key to avoiding them is to pace yourself, said Schultz.

“Try not to drink so much,” Schultz dutifully warns. “If you are going to go out, make sure you eat and drink water.”

However, If you do drink to excess, there is not a lot you can do to block a hangover, he added.

“I am not familiar with any solid medical breaththrough,” said Schultz. “I am sure there are many ‘breakthrough’ treatments people are happy to sell you, but whether they work or not is another matter.”

As to the most famous hangover cure of all time?

“Hair-of-the-dog? There is nothing to that,” said Schultz.

Drinking alcohol to cure a hangover is more likely to worsen many of the symptoms while merely delaying them at best.

Another famous cure people swear by, the greasy breakfast, is less harmful than the hair-of-the-dog, but it’s not likely to be all that helpful either.

“Eating helps, but not in a magic way other than it slows the absorption of alcohol,” said Schultz.

If you’re feeling nauseous, a greasy breakfast might make you feel more queasy. Instead try eggs or basic foods you think you can keep down.

Other remedies growing in popularity include pricey options such as the Hangover Detox offered by the Hydration Room in Newport Beach or Laguna Beach. The Hydration Room’s discounted St. Patrick’s Day Hangover special costs $130-$175 and involves an IV providing “electrolyte fluid” “high-dose vitamins” and a “potent, long lasting non-narcotic pain reliever.”

Such treatments do treat some symptoms of the hangover, but they are probably overkill, said Schultz.

“It’s not going to make you feel completely better,” he warned.

So what’s the best thing you can do for yourself if you get hungover?

Eat, rehydrate with water, juice or gatorade, and take over-the counter anti-nausea medications and pain relievers, said Schultz.

Contrary to what you often hear, aspirin and ibuprofen are not superior to Tylenol for hangovers, he said. Tylenol, which can be problematic for damaged livers, is not likely to have any adverse impacts to a healthy person, said Schultz.

“Stay away from aspirin or ibuprofen because those are irritants to stomach and will make you throw up more. For a normal person Tylenol is probably the lesser of all evils.”

Cheers!

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