One drink leads to another and those late, sleepless nights lead to a not so great morning…it’s safe to say we’ve all been there. Whether you’re pregaming with the whole crew at a tailgate before a football game, or enjoying a night out in Dallas, don’t let an epic day or night or night keep you from feeling less than your best tomorrow.
What is it about alcohol that can make you so dehydrated? Let’s dive into the specifics, and why proper hydration plays a key role!
What Causes a Hangover?
It’s important to know the signs of dehydration before they conquer you! If you’ve had a bit too much to drink, you most likely remember you’re body’s reaction to it. According to The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Alcohol suppresses the release of vasopressin, a hormone produced by the brain that sends signals to the kidneys causing them to retain fluid. As a result, alcohol increases urination and excess loss of fluids. Without hydrating consistently throughout your epic night, you will soon find that last night’s cocktails lead to the next morning’s dehydration. Alcohol intake affects your body’s electrolyte levels. Electrolyte imbalances may contribute to headaches, irritability, and weakness, according to Healthline.
Benefits of Hydration
How do dehydration and hangovers go hand-in-hand? According to a study on Alcohol’s Impact on Kidney Function, excessive alcohol consumption can have profound negative effects on the kidneys and their function in maintaining the body’s fluid, electrolyte, and acid-base balance. While some alcoholic beverages can worsen the severity of hangovers more or less than others, it’s important to focus on ways to avoid dehydration altogether, which can ultimately lead to the next morning’s severe hangover.
Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of proper hydration:
- Improves Sleep Quality: Not only does hydration help with getting proper sleep but proper sleep helps to avoid the severity of hangovers!
- Improves Mood: Let’s be real, you’ve probably never met someone who was overcoming a hangover while still feeling their best (both physically or mentally) Even mild dehydration can alter a person’s mood, energy level, and ability to think clearly, according to studies from the University of Connecticut’s Human Performance Laboratory.
- Fuels Energy: When you’re giving your body the nutrients and vitamins it needs, your body increases its energy levels, allowing you to feel less fatigued, focused and ready to conquer the day!
Proper hydration isn’t the cure-all for hangovers, however, it can certainly lessen the severity of the symptoms of hangovers!
Tips to Prevent Dehydration
- Hydrate before drinking alcohol: Stay on top of dehydration and the hangover symptoms by filling your body with nutrients before alcohol strips your body of electrolytes
- Hydrate consistently throughout your night of drinking: Replacing lost fluids with water combats dehydration and keeps you from drinking more alcohol in the meantime.
- Know your alcohol limits: If you’ve experienced hangovers one too many times, you may know by now the limit when you reach that point of dehydration. By understanding your alcohol limits, you can avoid the severity in the consequences your body experiences.
How Can you Rehydrate From a Hangover?
Now, let’s say that you’ve already surpassed the opportunity to hydrate before dehydration….while there isn’t a cure, there are ways to lessen the symptoms!
We may be biased, but there is a lot to say about the impact of our IV drips on getting back on the road to recovery! Let’s review some of our IV drips that we swear by if nausea, headaches, or heartburn are keeping you down!
Hangover Helper: Feeling hungover after a fun night out in Uptown, Bishop Arts, or Victory Park and hoping to feel better faster? Our Hangover Helper Includes 1 liter of IV fluid + goodness to help relieve heartburn, nausea, and that unfortunate pounding headache.
Hangover Helper Max: if you’re feeling rough from being “overserved”, you don’t have to suffer through that headache, heartburn, nausea, or even that pesky cottonmouth. Try the Hangover Helper Max when you’ve really gone and done it. This drip has all the good stuff in the Hangover Helper Drip but adds an extra bag of IV fluid (for 2 liters total).
The Headbanger: No one likes a constant throbbing head. If you’re looking for some migraine relief, this IV drip is for you. This drip which contains one liter of IV fluids, electrolytes, caffeine, and pain relief, can help when you have a headache, especially during allergy season, or if you’re feeling extra dehydrated.
While excessive alcohol consumption can lead to dehydration, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a night out, or celebrate the victory of your winning team with a few cocktails, as long as you take precautions and enjoy in moderation. At the end of the day, (or the beginning of the next) just know we have your back when you’re ready to overcome the symptoms of hangovers or simply replenish your hydration altogether!