The December “Drinker’s” Detox (pt. 3): How to Prevent a Holiday Hangover
HOLIDAY/STRESS/ALCOHOL/DETOX
Welcome Back and Happy Holidays …
If you just joined us, we’ve been discussing how to enjoy a few festive drinks over the Holidays without damaging our bodies too badly, including what types of alcohol to avoid if you don’t want a hangover ...
Be sure to check out The December “Drinker’s” Detox (pt. 1&2) if you haven’t already .
Last time we ranked popular types of alcohol from “meanest to cleanest” so you could make an informed decision if you do choose to imbibe this Holiday …
.As I said before, the ultimate “Holiday Gift” in this context would be enjoying the sensations of alcohol, but not paying the price the next morning, right?
Well, there are several ways to do that!
The first is my go-to on occasions when I do have some alcohol:
Pine Pollen
Pine Pollen is a phyto-androgen and is completely safe in it’s whole-food form.
I always make sure to have Lost Empire Herbs Pine Pollen either that day OR the morning after.
This strategy will reverse any ill effects of excess estrogen from ingesting alcohol.
Again, you can do this one before and after you drink; however, I think it’s smarter to “pre-detox” wisely if you choose to enjoy a drink or two.
That said, the next 5 options should be done in advance ONLY.
This is important, so remember …
All of these should be done the day or night of, NOT the morning after. Quick “Drinker’s” Detox Options:
Option 1:
Drink a lot of water, preferably structured. A very fast and simple way to structure and mineralize your water is by tossing a small pinch of Celtic Sea Salt in your glass, which will make it far more hydrating and bioavailable to your cells. A small packet of this salt can be carried anywhere. An ideal ratio would be one glass of water with each drink. Your body dilutes toxins with water so they can be safely eliminated, so this is the crucial first step.Option 2:
After you’re done having drinks, take Pure Vitamin C.
The tricky thing with this is that you need a dose on the larger side for it to work as an anti-toxin and “eat” the alcohol and its toxic metabolite acetaldehyde.
Small doses don’t cut it, and acetaldehyde is what makes you feel bad the next morning.
For most people 5,000-10,000mg before bed is going to be about right to handle any ill effects.
For a reference point, I take 4,000-5,000mg daily, so if I have a couple drinks I add to that amount.
This works great!
Option 3:
Supplement with NAC, or N-Acetyl L-Cysteine.
This one works best if you take it no later than your first drink vs Vitamin C, which you can do at the end of the night.
This decreases the amount of acetaldehyde in your bloodstream via a different pathway than C.
The benefit is that you don’t need to take that much, 2-4 capsules or so, which is convenient when out and about.
The downside is that it’s more expensive and not that easy to find – but it is out there, especially in supplements made specifically for detoxing alcohol.
Option 4:
Alcohol depletes your B Vitamins; if you are really planning on hitting it hard you should take a high quality B-complex, especially one high in B-12, BEFORE you have any alcohol.
Matter of fact, alcohol cravings can be mitigated by high dose B-Vitamins.
The founder of AA, Bill Wilson, discovered this several years after AA began and tried to add high dose B-Vitamin (and other vitamin) supplementation to the AA program.
He was shut down by the board of directors, and to this day AA does not mention the importance of B-Vitamins in dealing with alcoholism in any of its material, preferring instead to tell people it’s all in their head.
Option 5:
Aka … HOW TO HIT THE EJECT BUTTON IF YOU HAD TOO MUCH …
Take activated charcoal the night of, ESPECIALLY if you’ve had unfiltered alcohol like beer or wine.
The charcoal will serve as the “missing filter” in your body and sop up all those toxins rapidly.
The catch is that it will bind to anything else you’ve eaten as well, so try to space this out from dinner.
And make SURE you take charcoal with a LOT of water, as it needs quite a bit to work effectively.
In summary, I’ve used all of these, and they all work!
If you’re looking for a good long-term maintenance plan, I recommend daily vitamin C and B vitamin supplementation, and hydration with structured water.
This will be more than enough for casual, lower-dose amounts of alcohol.
If you happen to have more than you anticipated - joining in those “Reindeer Games” this Holiday Season - add on the other options mentioned above.
Join us next time to learn all about what NOT to eat over the Holidays and some simple ,all-natural ways to aid digestion when you just have to have another helping …
‘Til then … Have a Happy AND Healthy Holiday! Theo
