The holidays have come and gone in a blur of festive cheer. If you’re reading this, chances are you rang in the new year with a bit too much revelry and are now paying the price with a wicked hangover. We’ve all been there— headache, nausea, fatigue, maybe even some dizziness or stomach issues. Hangovers are no fun at all.

Luckily, there are some great foods and drinks that can help relieve hangover symptoms and get you back on your feet. Keep reading for some tasty and effective hangover relief remedies.

Why You Get Hang Over

Hangovers produce that awful feeling for a few key reasons:

  • Dehydration

Alcohol is a diuretic, meaning it makes you urinate more frequently, leading to dehydration and electrolyte imbalance. This causes symptoms like headache, fatigue, dizziness, and dry mouth.

  • Inflammation

Your liver works overtime to metabolize alcohol, causing inflammation. This can also make headaches and nausea worse.

  • Stomach irritation

Alcohol can irritate the stomach lining, triggering stomach aches, nausea and even vomiting in some hangover cases.

  • Low blood sugar

Booze causes blood sugar ups and downs, so you may wake up with shakes, weakness, and fatigue if your blood sugar drops too low.

Best Foods for Hangover Relief

  • Bananas

Bananas are rich in potassium, an electrolyte that can become depleted after heavy drinking. The extra potassium can help reduce hangover symptoms like muscle cramps, headache, and fatigue.

  • Eggs

Eggs contain an amino acid called cysteine that helps break down acetaldehyde, the toxin behind many hangover symptoms. The protein in eggs also helps stabilize blood sugar.

  • Oatmeal

A complex carb like oatmeal digests slowly, helping normalize blood sugar. The fiber also helps soak up excess stomach acid and settle digestion.

  • Bone broth

Sipping mineral-rich bone broth is an ideal way to replenish the electrolytes lost while drinking. This can relieve headaches, fatigue, and muscle cramps.

  • Honey

Just a spoonful of honey can work wonders by quickly raising low blood sugar levels which leads to hangover weakness, dizziness, and fatigue after drinking.

  • Avocados

Loaded with vitamins, minerals, and healthy fats, vitamin-rich avocados can help replenish nutrients depleted by alcohol. The fiber may also help settle an upset hangover stomach.

Best Drinks for Hangover Relief

  • Water

Alcohol’s diuretic effect causes dehydration, so drinking plenty of water should be your first line of defense. Try alternating alcohol with water to prevent hangover thirst and headache.

  • Fruit juice

Sipping fruit juice like orange, grapefruit, or tomato juice provides hydration plus vitamins and minerals to replenish depleted nutrient stores.

  • Vegetable juice

Low on fruits? Drink your veggies instead! Vegetable juices pack vitamins and minerals that can relieve hangover symptoms.

  • Ginger tea

Ginger is a time-tested stomach settler that can ease hangover nausea. Try sipping ginger tea with honey to also boost hangover and low blood sugar.

  • Mint tea

Soothing mint tea boosts hydration and provides hangover relief through headache-calming, stomach-settling, and anti-inflammatory effects.

  • Coconut water

The electrolytes and minerals in coconut water make it an ideal beverage to replenish what’s lost during alcohol’s diuretic effect, relieving headaches and fatigue.

Foods to Avoid When Hungover

When you’re already feeling lousy after a night of too much drinking, eating the wrong foods can make hangover symptoms even worse. Steer clear of these hangover pitfalls:

  • Greasy foods

Bacon and other fatty foods may seem tempting when you’re hungover, but they can further upset your stomach and cause discomfort.

  • Spicy foods

Fiery wings or an extra hot Bloody Mary might be your go-to hangover cure, but spicy foods can irritate your GI tract and exacerbate nausea.

  • Sugary treats

Sweet baked goods and other sugar-loaded snacks can cause your blood sugar to rapidly spike and then crash, making hangover fatigue and weakness worse.

Lifestyle Changes to Prevent Hangovers

Making a few simple lifestyle tweaks can help fend off hangovers, or at least minimize their severity:

  • Pace alcohol intake

Too much alcohol too fast is a recipe for next-day misery. Pace yourself by having no more than one drink per hour and incorporating water and food. Moderation is key.

  • Alternate alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks

Have your cocktail, then follow it with a glass of water or a non-alcoholic beverage before treating yourself to another cocktail. Staying hydrated curbs hangovers.

  • Don't drink on an empty stomach

Eating before and even during drinking sessions helps prevent low blood sugar and slow alcohol absorption into your system. Both can worsen hangovers.

  • Take a vitamin B supplement

Research shows that taking B vitamins, namely thiamine, before drinking helped participants avoid hangover nausea, headache, and fatigue.

Conclusion

Hangovers produce that awful, worn-out feeling through dehydration, inflammation, stomach irritation, and blood sugar ups and downs. But the strategies outlined above like staying hydrated, getting nutrients, and avoiding certain foods can help relieve symptoms. Pacing drinks, eating enough, and taking B vitamins may also help fend off hangovers altogether.

Above all, respect your body and limits when drinking. Getting wasted rarely ends well. So look after yourself by deploying some of these handy hangover relief tips. Your body and future self will thank you.

The good news is that many of the fresh, nutritious foods and drinks recommended above are available at any Fresh Farms Market. At Fresh Farms, we offer the freshest bananas, vegetables, eggs, honey, and coconut water around – perfect for stocking your kitchen with natural hangover helpers.

Visit Fresh Farms today to explore their exceptional selection of farm-fresh goods to mend your hangover and nourish your body back to health. You’ll leave feeling great.