The impact of consuming food or drinking water on alcohol hangover

Purpose: The alcohol hangover can have a profound negative impact on daytime activities. Therefore, both consumers and researchers are searching for effective methods to prevent hangovers. There is anecdotic evidence that eating or drinking water directly after an evening of heavy alcohol consumption may prevent nextday hangover or reduce its severity [1]. Also, it has been suggested that consuming food during hangover enhances recovery [2-3]. As up to now there is no scientific evidence to support these hypotheses, the current study investigated the impact of consuming food or drinking water on alcohol hangover severity. Methods: A survey was held among N= 826 Dutch students reporting on their latest occasion of heavy alcohol consumption that resulted in a next-day hangover. Data was recorded on total alcohol consumption and whether food was consumed directly after drinking. Next-day hangover severity was scored on a scale ranging from 0 (absent) to 111 (extreme). The practice of consuming food or drinking water to relief hangover symptoms was recorded as well as its effectiveness on a scale ranging from 0 (no effect) to 10 (total relief). Results: N= 449 students (54.4%) reported consuming food directly after alcohol consumption (before going to bed). Hangover severity of those that had consumed food (mean = 24.2, SD = 15.0) and those that not consumed food (mean = 26.2, SD = 15.6) was not significantly different (p = 0.06). However, subjects not consuming food consumed significantly more alcohol (mean 11.4, SD = 6.4 alcoholic drinks) than subjects who consumed food after drinking (mean 9.9, SD = 5.3 alcoholic drinks). When controlling for the amount of alcohol consumed, the reduction in hangover severity after consuming food was significant (p = 0.014). Although statistically significant, the absolute difference has no clinical relevance on the 111-point scale. Regarding consuming food to reduce hangover severity, N= 369 subjects (44.7%) reported having tried consuming a heavy breakfast and N= 280 subjects (33.9%) have tried consuming fat food to relief hangovers. The reported effectiveness of consuming a heavy breakfast (mean = 5.5, SD = 2.5) and fat food (mean = 5.4, SD = 2.9) on reducing hangover severity was however modest. Similarly, the effectiveness of drinking water during alcohol consumption (mean = 5.2, SD = 2.4, N= 618) or before going to bed (mean = 5.6, SD = 2.6, N= 502) was only modest. Conclusions: This survey data suggest that consuming food or drinking water, either before going to bed or during hangover, have no relevant effect on the severity of alcohol hangover. Our findings should be confirmed in a controlled experimental setting. To develop effective countermeasures of the alcohol hangover, more research is needed to elucidate its pathogenesis and biobehavioral correlates. Currently, the only effective method to prevent a hangover is to consume alcohol in moderation.