No one wants to feel sick after a night of drinking. Waking up with a pounding headache, upset stomach, and extreme thirst is the last thing anyone wants to do after a night out.
Luckily, there’s a way to avoid this.
A night of drinking doesn’t always have to end badly. If you drink moderately, and in a safe way, you can avoid a hangover completely.
It’s important to make sure you eat something before you begin drinking. Drinking on an empty stomach is never a good idea.
Drinking only one type of alcohol throughout the night will also be helpful the next morning, according to WebMD.
“I always make sure to drink a lot of water. It makes me feel so much better,” said sophomore psychology major Clare Bailey.
It’s also a good idea to drink a glass of water in between each alcoholic beverage, rather than consuming drink after drink for the entire night.
“I drink coconut water before I go to bed at night. It restores all the nutrients your body loses after you’ve been drinking,” said junior economics major Erin Seipp.
Coconut water contains sugar and electrolytes, and is great for hydrating, according to WebMD. This makes it a great hangover cure.
“I also drink Pedialyte in the morning,” Seipp added. “If I wake up with even the slightest hangover, it gets rid of it.”
Pedialyte is a beverage for infants and children created to prevent dehydration. But, because of the amount of electrolytes in the beverage, it can help hangovers. Gatorade has the same effect, because it also has electrolytes, and will keep you hydrated.
Of course, the best way to avoid hangovers is to avoid drinking a lot. Keeping track of and limiting the number of drinks you have is an easy way to do so.
One way to keep track of your drinks is to use a pen to count how many you’ve had, or to make a note on your phone.
Even sending yourself a text message for each drink you have is an easy way to make sure you don’t lose count.
Also, always make sure you know what you’re drinking and how much alcohol is in it. Drinking a beer is a lot different from drinking a strong mixed drink or taking a shot.
“If I pay attention to what I’m drinking, and how quickly I’m drinking it, it usually works out a lot better for me. I think the best thing to do is to go slow,” sophomore community health major Andrea Safirstein said.
So to recap: eat before drinking, stick to one type of alcohol, rotate between water and alcohol, pace yourself, and to be smart, keep track of the number of beverages that you consume. Your body will thank you when you need to be up early and enjoy the daylight hours.