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According to "Hangover Mechanisms and Mediators" by Robert Swift, M.D., Ph.D. and Dena Davidson, Ph.D. on file at the U.S. National Institute of Health: "Multiple possible contributors to the hangover state have been investigated, and researchers have produced evidence that alcohol can directly promote hangover symptoms through its effects on urine production, the gastrointestinal tract, blood sugar concentrations, sleep patterns, and biological rhythms." It is the depletion of blood sugars that causes irritability and disrupts sleep patterns and biological rhythms." The Cure contains 13 grams of dextrose that is included to help increase blood sugar levels and so combat symptoms that result from their depletion.
In any drink, it is the alcohol that intoxicates you. A standard serving of 1 ½ ounces of distilled spirits contains the same alcohol content as a standard 5 ounce glass of wine which contains the same alcohol content as a standard 12 ounce glass of beer. When you drink alcohol, it's not what you drink that gets you drunk but how much you drink.
Dehydration is the major cause of the ill effects associated with hangovers. Dry mouth is just one of these. Dehydration causes much of the cramps and aches associated with hangovers. The reason for this is that alcohol is a diuretic. Drinking alcohol causes the body to increase urinary output. The consumption of 50 g of alcohol in 250 milliliters (ml) of water (i.e. approximately 4 drinks) causes the elimination of 600 to 1,000 ml (or up to 1 quart) of water over several hours. Alcohol promotes urine production by inhibiting the release of a hormone (i.e., anti-diuretic hormone, or vasopressin) from the pituitary gland. In turn, reduced levels of anti-diuretic hormone prevent the kidneys from reabsorbing (i.e., conserving) water and thereby increase urine production.
Replenishing the body's water supply after a night of drinking combats dehydration, and it also helps dilute the leftover byproducts in the stomach. Adding salt and sugar to water helps replace the electrolytes and sugars depleted through urination. The Cure was invented by a Triathlon athlete who was struck by the similarities between the cramps and aches that ultra-endurance athletes experience and the symptoms drinkers experience with hangovers. Both, alcohol and ultra-endurance sporting events dehydrate the body. If re-hydration and electrolyte replacement does the job for athletes, why wouldn't a similar approach work for hangover sufferers? The Cure was the result. You can stop the dry mouth feeling by taking one packet of The Cure after your last alcoholic drink.
Caffeine (often taken as coffee) is commonly used to counter-act the fatigue and malaise associated with a hangover. The problem is that caffeine can actually make a hangover worse. The reason is, like alcohol, caffeine is a diuretic. Drinking coffee can make a drinker even more dehydrated and so increase the severity of a hangover. The Cure is effective because it re-hydrates the body and provides a natural pick-me-up through its vitamin, mineral and nutrient blast rather than amping up the body with stimulants.
Absolutely but there are many causes of hangover symptoms so it is important to address all of them. The advantage of taking a product like The Cure is that it has been specifically formulated to attack the full spectrum of hangover causes.
Regarding toxins in alcohol, Ethanol (ethyl alcohol) is the toxic ingredient in alcoholic beverages. Ethanol causes decreased motor function and decreased consciousness level. At high concentrations, ethanol is an anesthetic and can cause autonomic dysfunction (eg, hypothermia, hypotension), coma, and death from respiratory depression and cardiovascular collapse. Emergency medical authorities should be immediately contacted anytime anyone shows signs of acute alcohol poisoning. When used chronically, ethanol affects multiple organ systems. Heavy drinking is associated with liver problems, such as cirrhosis, and new studies suggest a connection between heavy drinking a liver cancer.
Even moderate drinking introduces toxins into the body. Acetaldehyde is a by-product of metabolizing alcohol. Acetaldehyde induces a deficiency of vitamin B1. Thiamin, or Vitamin B1, is so critical to brain and nerve function it is often called the nerve vitamin. Dr. Herbert Sprince, M.D. and his colleagues published many articles in the 1970s detailing the results of their experiments which used various nutrients to protect rats from AH poisoning. Sprince fed a control group of rats an amount of AH sufficient to kill 90% of the control group in 72 hours. The experimental group of rats given the same amount of AH were also given various nutrients, either singly or in combination, that might detoxify the AH. After 72 hours, the death rate for rats given large oral doses of Vitamin C was only 27% (vs. 90% in controls) and 10% for rats receiving Vitamin B1. FYI: The Cure contains 177% of the RDA for Vitamin C and 133% of the RDA for Vitamin B1.
The Cure also contains milk thistle. There is mounting evidence to suggest that milk thistle protects the liver against destructive toxins and oxygen-free radicals. Its active ingredient is silymarin, has been used successfully in the treatment of alcohol toxicity of the liver, viral hepatitis, and chronic liver disease.
Make no mistake, however, alcohol is toxic. No hangover cure or headache or upset stomach remedy can protect the body against the long term effects of heavy alcohol consumption. The best approach to avoiding these is to avoid chronic heavy drinking.
Alcohol is full of calories and calories fatten people up. Although alcohol moves through the body, its caloric content creates fat that stays long after the alcohol leaves. Approximately 3,500 calories will produce one pound of fat. Consequently, it only takes about twelve pints of beer to raise body weight by one pound and that typically appears right around the belly. The chart below list the caloric content of some common alcoholic beverages:
| Drink |
Number of calories |
| 1 pint of beer or lager |
180 - 300 |
| 1 screwdriver |
140 |
| 1 gin and tonic |
140 |
| 1 rum and coke |
145 |
| 1 glass of white wine |
85 |
Fatigue is a hangover symptom. Alcohol consumption can induce sleep disorders by disrupting the sequence and duration of sleep states and by altering total sleep time. The Cure's dextrose replenishes blood sugars whose depletion is often responsible for interrupted sleep but also helpful is some form of pick-me-up to re-invigorate the body. The Cure accomplishes this by delivering a blast of B vitamins. B vitamins are responsible for bolstering the metabolism. By providing energy to metabolic processes (energy usually in the form of ATP) cells can successfully power reactions that would otherwise never occur.
In the April 2, 2003 issue of Psychology Today, Willow Larson stated in an article entitled Vitamin B: A Key to Energy that, "B vitamins are often called the energy vitamins, but they are more like keys that unlock it. Fatigue, irritability, poor concentration, anxiety and depression-all can be signs of a B vitamin deficiency. That's because compounds in the B complex are needed for everything from the healthy maintenance of brain cells to the metabolism of carbohydrates, the brain's source of fuel. Bs are also necessary for production of neurotransmitters, which regulate mood and conduct messages through the brain. "
The Cure also helps to naturally increase the body's energy by replenishing blood sugars lost during alcohol consumption. Studies have proven that, in addition to providing an energy boost, natural sugars like The Cure's dextrose also increases the rate at which the body gets rid of toxins such as those left over from alcohol metabolism.
Waking up the body with a Vitamin B and dextrose blast is healthier than trying to accomplish the same thing through stimulants such as caffeine.
A comprehensive review by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) recently identified 16 scientific studies on the use of milk thistle for the treatment of various forms of liver disease. Five of seven studies evaluating milk thistle for alcoholic liver disease found significant improvements in liver function.
It's an important question because liver damage is the best known result of alcohol abuse. The liver will swell with acute intoxication, sometimes painfully, and will show fatty infiltration and enlargement if alcohol ingestion continues regularly. With excessive drinking over many years, the ravaged liver becomes scarred, shrunken, and relatively non-functional.
Milk thistle was included in The Cure as there is a growing body of evidence that suggest this herb is effective in the treatment or prevention of liver and kidney disease. It's not a new idea. Milk Thistle has been used since the Roman Empire in treating liver maladies. Many professional herbalists recommend milk thistle extract for the prevention and/or treatment of various liver disorders including fatty liver associated with long term alcohol use.
According to American Physician Health: A number of studies have suggested that silymarin (the active ingredient in Milk Thistle) is an anti-inflammatory. It regulates inflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF)3,TNF-alpha,4 nitrous oxide, interleukin-6, and interleukin-1 receptor antagonist.5 Silymarin also increases lymphocyte proliferation, interferon gamma, interleukin-4, and interleukin-10 cytokines, in a dose-dependent manner. Taken together, these effects suggest a likely role in preventing or treating infectious disease.
Alcohol directly irritates the stomach and intestines, causing gastritis or inflammation of the stomach lining and delayed stomach emptying, especially when beverages with a high alcohol concentration (as in hard liquor) are consumed. The most common treatment for upset stomach is sodium bicarbonate. The Cure contains sodium bicarbonate and citric acid which are classic ingredients used to combat stomach acidity and indigestion. They form antacids by their effervescent reaction with water. They decrease the acidity of the stomach's juices, by binding to and neutralizing excess acid. This helps to relieve the symptoms of heartburn and indigestion and settles the stomach.
The Cure contains sodium bicarbonate to relieve upset stomach but it also has another use. When sodium bicarbonate is mixed with water, it effervesces. The Cure's effervescence promotes mixing and quick absorption of all of its already-powdered ingredients completely and uniformly throughout the body avoiding problems that can occur when partially-dissolved tablets or pills irritate mucous membranes in the gastrointestinal tract.
Aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medications (e.g., ibuprofen or naproxen) may reduce the headache and muscle aches associated with a hangover but should be used cautiously, particularly if upper abdominal pain or nausea is present. Anti-inflammatory medications are gastric irritants and will compound alcohol-induced gastritis.
Nausea and upset stomach are typical symptoms associated with hangovers but they shouldn't persist for days after drinking. In order to accurately diagnose any chronic conditions, it is best to consult your own doctor.
This question is not entirely in my line but it's an interesting question, so let's take a stab at it. According to the CD that came with my Webster's New World Dictionary & Thesaurus Fourth Edition published by Wiley Publishing Inc. in 2005: In antiquity, toasted spiced bread was used to flavor wine. Pointing a glass at a person and bellowing the word, "toast" was meant to convey that the person honored also added flavor.
Do you have an alcohol- or hangover-related question for Dr. Hangover? Send Dr. Hangover your question via email. All questions must relate to alcohol or hangovers. All submissions should be no more than 100 words in length, and should include the writer's name, address and phone number. All submissions will be treated with strict confidentiality. We will not publish full names, street address, e-mail address or phone numbers. All submissions become the property of Rescue Beverage Corporation and are subject to editing for length, content, grammar, punctuation, etc. Individuals who submit questions that are chosen for publication on our web site will receive a free packet of The Cure. Send your submissions to: drhangover@thecuredrink.com
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