Yes, sleeping when you have a hangover is good because it allows your body time to recover, but the sleep quality is often poor due to alcohol disrupting your sleep cycle, so getting more rest (like going back to bed) helps alleviate symptoms like fatigue, headache, and nausea, even if the sleep isn't deeply restorative. Prioritizing rest, hydration, and simple carbs is key for recovery, as sleep helps counter the effects of disrupted sleep from drinking.
Getting a good night's sleep can help lessen the severity of hangover symptoms, but alcohol can disrupt sleep quality. Sleep can help the body recover from a hangover, but the amount of sleep needed varies for each person.
While light, low-intensity activities like walking may be acceptable for some, it's crucial to prioritize rest, hydration, and recovery when hungover. Pushing yourself too hard in this state could end up making your hangover worse and increase the risk of injuries.
A hangover is unpleasant, but symptoms tend to go away within a day or so. If you drank too much alcohol and feel sick, try at-home hangover remedies like drinking plenty of water, eating some carbs and sleeping. There's no quick cure for hangovers. You need to let your body rid itself of the alcohol and heal.
It can take your body hours to get back to normal after a heavy night's drinking. Alcohol affects your sleep, so you will probably be feeling very tired and you may have to cancel plans or miss work.
The "3-2-1" (or often "1-2-3") drinking rule is a guideline for moderate alcohol consumption: 1 drink per hour, no more than 2 drinks per occasion, and at least 3 alcohol-free days per week, helping to pace intake and reduce risks. It aligns with official health advice, emphasizing that the body processes only about one standard drink (e.g., 12oz beer, 5oz wine) per hour, and provides a framework for mindful drinking to avoid binge patterns and health issues, though it's a simplification of broader guidelines.
When Does a Hangover Peak and How Long Does It Last? Hangover symptoms peak when the blood alcohol concentration in the body returns to about zero. The symptoms can last 24 hours or longer.
“But remember, caffeine is a diuretic, which might push you to the bathroom more and worsen dehydration — a key culprit behind those dreaded hangover symptoms. Sugar in Coke offers a quick energy boost too, which could temporarily alleviate that weak, sluggish feeling.”
When hungover, avoid more alcohol ("hair of the dog"), caffeine (like coffee), greasy/sugary foods, strenuous activity, and driving, as these worsen dehydration, irritate your stomach, or impair you further. Instead, rehydrate with water, eat bland foods (toast, crackers), rest, and be cautious with pain relievers like acetaminophen (liver damage risk) or ibuprofen (stomach irritation).
5 Poses to Cure Your Hangover
But researchers also found that the students who engaged in vigorous exercise during the three-month window also suffered fewer hangovers than people who did less exercise. Not only that, the hangovers they did experience were reportedly less severe.
“Sweating is not the means to remove toxins,” says Taylor. “Going for a run or sitting in a sauna after a night of drinking won't reduce the toxins produced by metabolising alcohol, and it won't lower your blood alcohol level.” In fact, there is no way to speed up alcohol detoxification.
Treatment
The "20-minute rule for alcohol" is a simple strategy to moderate drinking: wait 20 minutes after finishing one alcoholic drink before starting the next, giving you time to rehydrate with water and reassess if you truly want another, often reducing cravings and overall intake. It helps slow consumption, break the chain of continuous drinking, and allows the body a natural break, making it easier to decide if you've had enough or switch to a non-alcoholic option.
A popular theory suggests that dehydration is the primary cause of alcohol hangover. ∗ If correct, the consumption of water could alleviate hangover symptoms. This review concludes that hangover and dehydration are two co-occurring but independent consequences of alcohol consumption.
“Even if you slept for hours after drinking, alcohol reduces sleep quality, so rest is an essential part of recovery,” said Dr. Sawhney. “Napping, dimming lights and minimizing stimulation can help your brain rebalance neurotransmitters disrupted by alcohol and improve hangover symptoms.”
The 1-2-3 drinking rule is a guideline for moderation: 1 drink per hour, no more than 2 drinks per occasion, and at least 3 alcohol-free days each week, helping to pace consumption and stay within safer limits. It emphasizes pacing alcohol intake with water and food, knowing standard drink sizes (12oz beer, 5oz wine, 1.5oz spirits), and avoiding daily drinking to reduce health risks, though some health guidance suggests even lower limits.
The 8 stages of every hangover
' What you are feeling are the effects of dehydration and low blood sugar. To bring your blood sugar back up to normal, you really just need to eat anything with some carbs, but balance it out with protein or healthy fats to prevent further blood sugar drops,” she says.
Don't make it worse
Way, way worse. Instead, opt for something like Powerade or Lucozade. These isotonic drinks are designed to replenish sugars and salts quickly, so can work wonders for that hangover.
A study carried out in China investigating 57 different drinks found that Sprite was surprisingly good at ridding the body of acetaldehyde, the main chemical by-product of the breakdown of alcohol, which is thought to be the main reason you get a hangover.
Milk does a body good, but it won't help you sober up or relieve you from a high or hangover. However, milk does provide a few benefits that can alleviate symptoms of intoxication. Milk contains mineral-rich water, which supports healthy fluid and electrolyte levels.
While hangover symptoms vary from mild to severe, nursing a hangover after the age of 30 can be especially challenging. If you are struggling with more intense hangovers in your 30s, it's no coincidence. With age, your body cannot process alcohol the way it used to.
The word itself, however, has only been fermenting since the late 19th century. Originally, hangover described someone or something that remained or simply survived, but it was later distilled into common use as a word for the effects of overconsumption of alcohol or drugs.
Waking up drunk means that a person is still under the direct influence of alcohol, as their blood alcohol concentration is still elevated. In contrast, a hangover takes place at the same time as the body attempts to metabolise and clear alcohol from the system, typically manifesting hours after drinking has stopped.