Waking up a bit queasy one Sunday morning you might ask yourself, “what is a hangover?” Simply put, a hangover is a subset of unwanted physical and mental symptoms due to the excess consumption of alcohol.
Depending on the amount of fun you had the night before, your hangover symptoms can vary in type and in magnitude. The number and scale of symptoms one suffers usually depends on how much they have had to drink the previous night. From just feeling a bit queasy… to feeling like you got hit by a truck… to not even being able to get out of bed… the experience is never fun.
Acute symptoms can include all, one or some of the following:
- Nausea, Acid Reflux, and/or Diarrhea
- Dehydration
- Headache
- Fatigue, trouble concentrating, and/or anxiety
- Trembling (the “shakes”)
- Increased heart rate and/or increased blood pressure
- Decreased visual-spatial skill performance
- Severe cases: Alcohol poisoning and death
As with any drug, alcohol use can cause unwanted side effects as well. Furthermore, just because the party is over there could still be a substantial risk to your health despite returning your blood alcohol level back to normal. If any of the underlying symptoms of a hangover are too severe you might require serious medical attention.
Veisalgia, the formal name for a hangover, is defined as an “uneasiness following debauchery”. Hangovers can range from a benign subset of unpleasant alcohol-related side-effects to posing a substantial risk to the sufferer even in the absence of alcohol in the blood.
The hangover has been around since the discovery of alcohol. In fact, hangovers are even documented in the Bible. Check out this verse from Isaiah 5:11: Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!
There is some debate about the exact etiology of a hangover. The truth is that it’s a combination of several factors: dehydration, gastronomical distress, electrolyte and glycogen cannibalization, alcohol toxicity, allergens, compromised sleep architecture, and other factors still being discovered.
Along with being a nuisance, the alcohol hangover has substantial social, health, and economic consequences. In America, the total cost of alcohol use and abuse has been estimated as high as $148 billion per year (although this figure has been criticized for using unrealistic criteria).
Why does alcohol cause dehydration?
At the bar, you are taking in a lot of fluid but dehydration still occurs and the inside of your body feels parched… so what gives? Alcohol is a diuretic so it triggers your body to release fluid and causes you to urinate more. In short, alcohol dries everything up — it sucks up fluids from whatever tissues or membranes it touches.
Your body also has to use fluids to flush the alcohol out of the body because alcohol is so toxic. It depletes vitamins and minerals in the body (like potassium) which leaves you feeling thirsty, dizzy, and faint. The body has a defense system to prevent you from desiccation but drinking alcohol shuts this system down. Alcohol even reduces the fluid in your brain cells, which leads to headaches.
Many times, you confuse your simple need for water with wanting another drink, which further creates problems. The best way to combat this effect of alcohol is to start out with a glass of water (before you start drinking) and continue with another glass of water per each glass of liquor that you consume. End a night of drinking with a few more glasses and you most likely will feel better in the morning than you would have otherwise.
