When you drink too much, you can expect a nasty hangover torturing you to death the next morning. We’ve all been there at some point. But, discovering hangover cures almost makes the excessive, unhealthy drinking seem worth it. It’s not, but at least it looks like it.
It’s pretty easy to know if you are hungover. You have a headache, you’re nauseous, sensitive to light and sometimes sound too, dehydrated, dizzy and it’s basically just awful.
There isn’t too much scientific research on hangover cures. We know that the body does not process alcohol very well and everyone has a different capacity. So, there is no one way to determine if x number of drinks will cause a hangover. But there are some tried and tested ways of making them go away. Bananas, thankfully, feature on the list of things that can help if not cure it.
Why Is Lana Banana Special?
For those of you who didn’t get that, it’s an American Horror Story reference. Not something we just made up on the fly.
So, what’s in a banana that makes it a good hangover cure? Here’s the nutritional information. One medium-sized banana has roughly:
- 75 percent water
- 89 calories
- 1.1 grams of protein
- 12.2 grams of fructose, glucose and sucrose which is just sugar
- 2.6 grams of fiber
- 0.3 grams of fat
Bananas also have a lot of minerals and vitamins that the body needs on a daily basis. But this is a special morning, isn’t it? Your body needs a little extra help to be able to go about the day as usual. So, here’s what is in a banana that can get you there. A regular-sized banana contains:
- 10 percent potassium
- 6 percent magnesium
- 20 percent vitamin B6
- 14 percent vitamin C
And here’s how each of these nutrients helps with a hangover.
Sugar and Fiber
Bananas contain fructose, sucrose and glucose which are sugars. They also contain fiber which is good for digestion. This can help with digestive problems and give a good start to the day. It also gives you energy which you need more than ever.
Vitamin B6
Then there is vitamin B6 which is a rich presence in bananas. Some say this is the reason a banana can cut your hangover symptoms down by half. This is because foods that have a lot of protein and fat stop the alcohol from getting absorbed.
This will allow your metabolic activity to take control and get it out of your body before it wrecks more havoc. This is also why meat, which contains a lot of B6, is very helpful in treating a hangover. Meat also contains salts that will replace all the electrolytes you lost last night.
Vitamin C
As you probably know, alcohol is a diuretic which means you will lose more fluid than you consume over the drinking session. This happens because alcohol does not allow the body to release a hormone that handles your kidney functions. So, your kidney loses its mathematical ability and pushes everything out. This will get you dehydrated and result in a dry mouth in the morning.
Now, alcohol also contains toxins that cause inflammation in the liver. These toxins also kill every cell they touch. But antioxidants are an excellent way to keep inflammation in control. That is why vitamin C is very helpful in reducing the symptoms of a hangover.
Now, there isn’t a direct connection between vitamin C and hangover cures but there is a slightly long but logical road between the two. Vitamin C is present in all citrus fruits. So, see if some orange juice will help ease the symptoms.
Potassium
As mentioned earlier, alcohol blocks the hormone which controls your kidney functions and helps it decide when to hold water in the body. This is to stop you from getting dehydrated. When you drink you lose water and along with it, important minerals like potassium and sodium to name a couple of them.
Bananas have a lot of potassium which can help with nausea and tiredness even on a daily basis. So it is definitely a good idea when you are hungover. It might not always work but it is definitely worth a shot.
Magnesium
We’ve already mentioned that alcohol is a diuretic which means you might have downed a pitcher of beer but all of it will get out and then some. And the extra fluid you are losing will be water which contains magnesium, an essential mineral for your body.
This is all thanks to your kidneys which are now acting drunk. Heavy drinking causes you to lose these essential minerals but thankfully, bananas also contain a lot of magnesium.
So, if that is the thing you are missing and need to replenish, bananas are your man this morning. Magnesium also has the ability to calm the blood vessels in your body.
They are also said to help reduce headaches for some. So, if you have one of those, grab a banana.
Now, there are studies that show that alcohol consumption, in general, leads to a drop in magnesium. But we don’t know for a fact that just replenishing the magnesium content in your body will help cure a bad hangover. Another dicey detail but if the hangover is killing you, it’s worth a try.
Antacids
Bananas also have a lot of antacids which are good for your stomach. They give you energy and reduce inflammation which is generally a good thing for your liver.
This is also the reason why many holistic professionals claim that bananas are helpful in curing a hangover. We wouldn’t go as far as curing but it does help reduce heartburn and ease up an upset stomach.
Wrapping Up
Bananas are a very medicinal fruit and that is not an assumption. So, don’t wait for a night of binging to get to the sweet, yellow fruit. But if you are hungover, you might want to eat one before you pass out so that the effects in the morning are not as terrible as they might be for the number of drinks you downed.
Another one in the morning might just make you feel better. And if you feel like you can’t eat anything, preparing a couple of glasses of smoothies before leaving is not too much.
