The Why: One of the major reasons hangovers can stretch on longer than expected is because sleep is such an important part of getting over a hangover. While you may fall asleep quickly when you're drunk, your quality of sleep is diminished by the alcohol.
As we age we have fewer liver enzymes to break down the alcohol. We also lose muscle mass as we age, replacing our body with fat. A drink will cause more intoxication in a body with a higher fat content compared to a leaner body. Doctors have said feeling hung over is a combination of age, drinking history and life.
Hangover symptoms tend to ease up over eight to 24 hours. Your body has to clear the toxic byproducts of alcohol, rehydrate, heal tissue and restore functions and activity to normal.
Everyone has a different withdrawal experience. But if what you think is a hangover lasts for a second or third day, it's a sign that it might be more than just your typical hangover. Withdrawal can progress over a period of several days as your body adjusts to the absence of alcohol.
For example, the liver will be overworking to process alcohol, you'll be tired from little and/or poor quality sleep, you're likely to be urinating more as alcohol is a diuretic, leaving you dehydrated and headache-y – and any post-night out vomiting can irritate the stomach for several days. '
Hangovers vary from person to person, but usually involve a headache, nausea, tiredness and dehydration. Dehydration is one of the main causes of your hangover symptoms.
Typical symptoms include fatigue, weakness, thirst, headache, muscle aches, nausea, stomach pain, vertigo, sensitivity to light and sound, anxiety, irritability, sweating, and increased blood pressure. A hangover can vary from person to person.
A throbbing headache, feeling groggy, worn out and weak? There are many tips and tricks to get rid of a hangover as soon as possible after a long night out. The right breakfast, fresh air and lots of water. This helps both inside and out: a shower after a long night of drinking can truly work wonders.
After a night out drinking you might wake up feeling anxious or worried about what happened the night before. This could include feeling on-edge or irritable and being unable to sleep or relax.
THE ANSWER
Yes, studies show that your body's ability to process alcohol gets less efficient as you age. Key body functions that help metabolize alcohol, like liver enzymes and total body water weight, tend to decrease with age.
Here's the truth: Sleep cannot sober you up or free you from the damage of alcohol, but it can reduce the side effects you'll feel. Fatigue, headaches and irritability are all hangover symptoms exacerbated by a lack of sleep, so getting some rest is a great remedy for recovery, as well as prevention.
Sip a glass of water
When you wake up hungover, especially if you're nauseous, it can feel like putting more liquids into your stomach is the last thing you need. But, drinking can cause mild dehydration, and rehydrating is important for feeling better.
That's because when you vomit, you lose some sodium, potassium and chloride. But if you are merely hungover, water is the best replacement fluid, he says. And it's free. A coffee the day after drinking might give you some much-needed energy, but it won't actually cure your hangover.
Stage 3: Regret
The hangover has reached its peak. Your life is over as you know it. You don't know how to help yourself, you begin to question all your life choices. All you want to do is turn back time as you swear to yourself you will never do this again.
“Some people will digest things more slowly, and probably will be more sensitive as well to alcohol,” says Dr Mehta. “As a result, you're ending up with the by-products of alcohol that give you that hangover in your system for longer, and a more sustained exposure.”
Dr Niall Campbell, consultant psychiatrist at Priory's Roehampton Hospital and one of the UK's leading alcohol addiction experts, says the idea that hangovers get worse with age is no myth - and has a lot to do with the body's changing metabolism, and prescription medications.
As alcohol leaves the body of a heavy drinker, the brain is flooded with more activity, the nervous system becomes hyperactive, and you may experience alcohol tremors or shakes. The shakes can happen as quickly as eight hours after your last drink.
“Vodka is known to be the best alcoholic beverage for the most minimal hangover. Gin, light rum and white wine are runner-ups—with brandy and whiskey being at the bottom of the list.
Sleeping off a hangover can help, along with taking antacids if your stomach is painful. Paracetamol is not the best hangover treatment as it is metabolised by the liver, which will have suffered enough. Aspirin will further irritate your stomach so avoid it too.
Hydration is just as important the next day, to help ease a headache and replenish fluids. For most people, simply drinking water or seltzer will be enough; a good practice is to drink fluids until your urine is pale yellow, Ms.
Medications that may potentially cure hangover symptoms
But a more recent study showed that ibuprofen combined with alcohol could be toxic to liver cells. There's another reason not to use NSAIDs to cure a hangover: They can be irritating to the stomach and cause kidney issues.
Over-imbibing can have symptoms of an elevated heart rate, increased blood pressure and vomiting the next day after a night or period of heavy drinking as the body continues to flush alcohol from the system. Both conditions can result from dehydration, inflammation, and expanding blood vessels.