Hangovers happen when our already overburdened livers struggle to clear out the excessive amount of toxins and chemicals ingested from too much alcohol. Our blood sugar dips. Our bodies are dehydrated, and overall fatigue takes over. Basically, you are creating a toxic internal environment and your body is letting you know. With the silly season fast approaching, we thought it best to give you some tips on how to help your body recover after the odd night or two of overindulging.

If and when you do drink, it’s so important to take good care of the body … it needs your love! Here are some of our favorite hangover-kicking tips.

1. Hydrate

Alcohol dehydrates the body. So drink up! Drink one glass of water after each alcoholic drink, and drink lots of water the day after, between 2-3 liters. Coconut water is fabulous for hangovers; it’s high in electrolytes that replenish the body’s water levels after dehydration. Add a pinch of sea salt and lemon juice to your water too to alkalize. Green juices would also be fabulous, as they’re high in minerals and electrolytes.

2. Take your B’s

Alcohol depletes vitamins in the body. B-vitamins are responsible for many metabolic processes of the body — the liver detox pathways rely on B’s to detox effectively. Taking 1-2 B-complex vitamins daily after drinking can work wonders.

3. Eat well before and after

Most people think a hangover is a good excuse to grease it up with burgers and fries. Uh uh. This will make you feel worse. Enjoy your protein and good fats: eggs, avocado and spinach are fabulous breakfast choices.

4. Eat before you drink

Always make sure your stomach is lined with food, which allows alcohol to be absorbed at a slower pace. This is a good time to enjoy slow releasing carbohydrates such as brown rice, sweet potato and quinoa. Perhaps enjoy some brown rice sushi before drinking. We suggest avoiding caffeine if you can, this is just an extra liver loader and can make you feel worse.

5. Sweat it out

Exercise stimulates the lymphatic system to excrete toxins and gets the blood flowing. Enjoy a quick hard workout. Exercises also release endorphins, the feel good hormones! Yoga is also amazing for hangovers.

6. Go for a swim

It just works magic. An ocean swim is even better.

7. Support your lovely liver

The brassica vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, Brussels sprouts) contains enzymes that support liver detox, so load up on them. Another good choice is to drink dandelion root tea, or take it in a supplement form. Lemon water and apple cider vinegar are also great for liver detox (1 Tbsp. in water, with ½ tsp. of turmeric). Eat grated carrots with lemon juice and sea salt and enjoy a green juice.

As a rule, go for the clear and clean alcohol options — gin, vodka would be the best choice WITHOUT the sugary mixers. Enjoy them with lemon juice and sparkling water. The sugary drinks make hangovers much worse.

TO CONCLUDE:

What is alcohol REALLY doing to me?

Causes electrolyte imbalance which reduces energy production, nerve firing and organ regulation, leaving you feeling tired, moody and out of whack
Kills essential bacteria which lines your gut and assists in many digestive roles
Destroys B vitamins, which are essential for all your metabolic processes such as energy production and red blood cell synthesis
Can cause hypoglycemia, even a day or two later, especially when drunk on an empty stomach
Causes sleep disturbances
Increases depressive symptoms
Increases free radical damage

How to avoid the negative effects of drinking:

Supplement with electrolytes — this is top of the list! Endura is a wonderful electrolyte drink you simply add to water to help restore all those lost electrolytes
Support your liver and the detoxification process with Vitamin C and other liver supplement support (ask your Practitoner).
Take probiotics to counter the destruction of essential gut bacteria
Supplement with B vitamins — this is definitely another important one!
Increase your intake of magnesium and antioxidants to boost energy and decrease free radical damage