Is Honey Good For Hangovers?
– omre

FREE US SHIPPING OVER
$60.00 USD

Table of Contents

1. Health benefits of honey
2. Causes of a hangover
3. Is honey good for hangovers?
4. Anything else to consider?
5. Conclusion

Is honey a good hangover cure? It’s surprisingly a common question and doesn’t have a simple answer.

When it comes to hangover cures, you’ve probably heard of all types of weird and wonderful options to alleviate your symptoms. However, most things you’ve tried probably didn’t work that well.

Nowadays, honey is hailed as a “superfood” because of its perceived health benefits, most of which are unproven.

So, can honey be the answer to your hangover woes?

In this article, we’re going to examine honey as a food and look at what it contains in terms of micronutrients and macronutrients. We’ll then look into whether the nutrients in honey have any benefits for a hangover.

Health benefits of honey

Bees use the nectar from plants to produce honey.

Nutritionally, 1 tablespoon of honey contains:

• 64 calories
• 17 grams of sugar: including fructose, glucose, maltose, and sucrose. In fact, fresh honey contains more sugar than water.
• Trace amounts of several vitamins and minerals. (Trace amounts mean less than 1% of your daily requirements. )
• Polyphenols. Polyphenols have antioxidant properties.(1)

The amount of nutrients in honey varies greatly depending on which pollen source the bees are using, whether it’s naturally produced and the geographical location of the honey.

Darker colored natural honey has higher levels of polyphenols. Polyphenols are naturally occurring antioxidants. 

The important thing to appreciate is that honey is very high in sugar and calories so the perceived health benefits have to be balanced against this. 

Causes of a hangover

Before we get into whether honey is good for a hangover or not, we first need to go over how alcohol causes hangovers:

Inflammation

One of the main causes of a hangover is inflammation. When alcohol is metabolized (broken down) in your liver, toxic by-products such as acetaldehyde are formed which react with your cells. In normal circumstances, acetaldehyde is quickly broken down into acetic acid which is harmless. However, during periods of overindulgence, your liver is overrun with the excess acetaldehyde load which wreaks havoc on your insides.

Dehydration

Dehydration is another major cause of a hangover. Alcohol is a diuretic which means it makes your kidneys flush out excess fluid. In fact, for every glass of wine you drink, you lose an extra 120mls of water. Therefore, if you’ve had a few glasses of wine over the course of an evening, it can leave you dehydrated.

Sleep disturbance

An overlooked cause of a hangover is poor sleep quality. Alcohol blocks your brain from reaching the REM stage of sleep. The REM stage is where dreams happen and is essential for making you feel fully rested. So, sleeping 8 hours after a few glasses of wine is not at all the same as sleeping 8 hours without any alcohol.

In summary, hangovers are caused by drinking more than your body can handle. Dehydration, poor sleep quality, congeners, and inflammation are just some of the ways excessive alcohol can negatively affect your body. Next up, we’ll take a closer look at whether honey is actually good for hangovers or not.  

Is honey good for hangovers?

So, now on to the all-important question, is honey good for hangovers?

It’s important to highlight that no ingredient is ever going to counteract all the negative effects of alcohol mentioned above. 

With that said, there are some nutrients in honey that are perceived to have hangover-related benefits.

Fructose

Honey contains high amounts of fructose which is a type of sugar. There are some studies that have shown fructose can potentially increase alcohol metabolism.(2)(3) That said, these studies are very small and over 20 years old. 

In addition, binge drinking can cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). Alcohol does this by blocking the release of glucose stored in your liver. Therefore, if you’ve had way too many drinks at happy hour, a sugar hit from honey may be exactly what you need.(4)

Antioxidants

We mentioned earlier that the process of alcohol metabolism produces a build-up of toxic by-products. These are normally neutralized by antioxidants. The polyphenols in honey could support your body’s antioxidant levels.(5) However, it’s important to mention that this hasn’t been proven in research studies. 

In summary, honey is unlikely to have any real benefit for a hangover. Aside from the fact it’ll give you a good sugar boost in the morning. 

What about Korean honey water for a hangover?

Korean honey water is a popular drink in Asia and is essentially honey dissolved in water. It’s marketed to have the same benefits as regular honey and is sometimes recommended as a hangover remedy.

However, it’s unlikely to have any greater anti-hangover properties than regular honey.

Is honey a hangover cure?

In reality, a true hangover cure doesn’t exist. The only reliable way to cure a hangover is not to drink in the first place.

When it comes to hangovers, prevention is always key. Drinking within your limits, keeping well hydrated and having a meal before going out are all important.

Anything else to consider?

Hangovers are a good sign from your body that you’ve been drinking more than your liver can handle. Trying to “cure” your hangover with honey is not the best approach. When it comes to hangovers, prevention is always better than cure.

Sticking to the basics by drinking plenty of water, eating before going out, and most importantly, reducing your alcohol intake is all that’s required to prevent the worst hangovers.

You could also try avoiding darker-colored drinks like red wine and bourbon. These drinks contain very high concentrations of congeners which have been shown in studies to make hangovers a lot worse. You can read more about this in our article on congeners.

Honey for hangovers – The verdict

That brings us to the end of our look into whether honey is good for hangovers or not. 

It’s high in sugar and there is some evidence that natural and darker colored honey may have a higher concentration of antioxidants. Whether this has any benefits for a hangover has not been tested or proven.

Some people like to mix honey with apple cider vinegar to use as a hangover drink. Others add it to their tea or have it with their breakfast.

The health benefits of honey should be taken with a pinch of salt. In addition, any potential benefit should be balanced against its high sugar content.

If you’re interested in natural hangover remedies, check out our article on the best teas for a hangover.

PrevNext

Read our blogs

Featured Posts

Read all Articles

Read more

Read more

Read more

Could Honey Cure My Hangover?
– Necta & Hive

With the festive party season in full swing, hands up who’s getting in the spirit of things?! Keep those hands up if you’ve been in the party spirit (quite literally) a little too much…? Overindulging is almost acceptable in December, and why not? With politics, doom and gloom dominating the headlines this year especially, we’re all allowed to let our hair down a little at the end of a busy year.   

If you have a hangover right now, you’ll probably have your own go-to cure. Do you treat it with gallons of water and a paracetamol? Or do you indulge a little further with a carb loaded breakfast and fizzy drinks?  

Either way, nothing truly gets rid of last night like a day in bed. But however you attempt to treat your fuzzy head, you’ll probably want it gone quickly, especially if you’re expected to be at work.  

So did you know that honey could be the answer to your wine fuelled prayers? 

Honey as a Hangover Cure 

The science is a little complex, so bear with us if your head is already hurting.  

When we drink alcohol, just like when we eat or drink anything, the body starts to break it down through the process of digestion. In the case of alcohol, our liver breaks it down into a chemical called acetaldehyde. Acetaldehyde is actually toxic to the human body, more so than alcohol, and according to Dr John Emsley of the Royal Society, the body needs to get rid of it as soon as possible by breaking this by product down.   

(Incidentally, drinking alcohol sensibly means the body can deal with this toxic substance, albeit by giving us a hangover. Sustained, long term drinking means that acetaldehyde can build up and cause damage to the liver.)  

Whilst this acetaldehyde is hanging around, we’re suffering the effects of a hangover. So if you’re feeling a bit toxic after last night’s party, then at least you know why – you’re actually full of (thankfully short term) toxins!  

But the human body is a clever thing. It uses fructose to turn toxic acetaldehyde into acetic acid, a harmless substance which is then metabolised into carbon dioxide which we then breath out. When this process is completed, we start to feel better – but it takes time.  

And this is where honey comes in! Honey is naturally sweet, just like sugar. But unlike sugar, which gets its sweetness from glucose, honey gets the majority of its sweetness from fructose. As we learnt above, fructose is what enables the body to break down acetaldehyde into acetic acid.   

So although the greatest healer for a hangover is time, eating honey can help to minimise the effects whilst our body does the rest. Luckily, Necta & Hive Marri wild Honeycomb and Jarrah honeys taste delicious as well as helping to speed up the duration of your hangover. Add a heaped teaspoon to a warm herbal tea (not hot, as this will kill all the natural healing properties of these active honeys) and enjoy. You’ll also be helping to rehydrate yourself at the same time, another important step in curing a hangover. We hope you heal quickly… Until next time!  

Back to Honey Blog

Hangover relief – tips from BAR-STREET

We will try to describe in as much detail as possible how to treat a hangover . Firstly, do not listen to stupid everyday advice like knocking out a wedge with a wedge, but rather make a decoction based on herbs.

The recipe is simple: one tablespoon of St. John’s wort, two tablespoons of motherwort flowers, four tablespoons of rose hips and three tbsp. spoons of honey. All this must be poured with boiling water and left for a while so that the broth is infused. Relief of a hangover i can be organized simply by having breakfast, but not a big one. For example, from scrambled eggs or soft-boiled eggs, buckwheat porridge, vegetables and fruits. It also happens that after a solid share of alcohol you drink, you feel that the situation is getting out of your control. To return it to you and get rid of the hangover, you should use the following medicine :

1. one glass of cold clean (preferably non-carbonated mineral) water with 12 drops of mint leaf extract (tincture). Mix it all well and drink in one gulp.

2. one glass of cold clean (preferably non-carbonated mineral) water with two drops of ammonia. In case of severe intoxication, add 4 more drops. All this must be thoroughly dissolved and drunk in one gulp.

An intensive ear massage also helps to bring you to your senses quickly. Just massage the ears of the “patient” and the blood flow to the head will allow him to cheer up! When a person asked the question “what helps with a hangover”, you can advise him one more small recipe:

– rinse a standard glass with vegetable oil so that the oil remains on its walls. Then put 1 egg yolk, two teaspoons of tomato sauce, black and red pepper, a few drops of vodka (do not overdo it :)) and a few drops of lemon juice. All this you need to drink in 1 sip.

In case of a severe hangover, another time-tested and people-tested recipe:

– one teaspoon of cognac, 1 egg yolk, two teaspoons of tomato sauce, one teaspoon of vegetable oil, a small pinch of table salt with black and red pepper. Put a teaspoon of spicy horseradish on this mixture. The drug for drinkers is ready – sober up!

Here are some tips on how to provide hangover relief if you or someone close to you decides to “pull a shot”:

– in case of a long feast, it is recommended to drink 50 gr. vodka – this will allow your body to better adjust.

– we also advise you to eat something fatty before you start drinking alcohol (you can drink a raw egg) – animal fats perfectly prevent the absorption of alcohol into the blood.

Don’t interfere! Try to drink only one type of alcohol.

Do not mix alcohol with small degrees (beer, wine) with vodka, cognac, etc.

Try to have a snack after every drink.

To neutralize alcohol, we recommend eating more potatoes, rye bread, and sauerkraut.

In no case do not drink or dilute alcohol with soda – the carbon dioxide contained in it in abundant quantities contributes to the absorption of alcohol into the human blood at times accelerated.

If you feel that you still drank too much – drink 1 glass of cognac, and do not drink after that for 40-50 minutes.

Yes, more. Try to smoke less – the scientifically proven fact that tobacco doubles the effect of alcohol on you has not yet been canceled.

One more opinion….

How to deal with a hangover, where to get a cure for a hangover???

Every person who has ever consumed alcohol, probably has an experience of not feeling well after that. Perhaps many have found for themselves some optimal method of dealing with this, let’s call it an ailment. Great! But, with a high probability it can be argued that there is a chance that one day this method may fail. This can happen in the case of drinking a new alcoholic drink for the body, or simply from any changes that have occurred in it. It is possible that the ingredient required for the recipe is not at hand and you will need to look for some alternative! Here, everyone will certainly benefit from the knowledge gained in this section!

So, in the most general sense, the fight against alcohol consequences can be carried out in two ways.

– prevent a hangover;

– neutralization of unpleasant symptoms after drinking alcohol.

Recipes are presented here without any excessive systematization. We do not recommend trying them at the same time – it can happen badly. Try, choosing any method, all the time to observe how it affects you. Most likely, not all of the listed recipes will be compatible for your body, but the task of this section is to let you choose your best option!

Prevent hangovers

After the holiday (better before going to bed) drink a glass of milk. It is desirable that it be as fat as possible.

This is the favorite way of many! At night you drink a liter – in the morning like a cucumber.

When eating, try to eat more fatty and sour, but in no case overeat;)

Drink any one kind of alcohol.

If, nevertheless, you could not resist the use of different types, then use them only in increasing degrees.

Drank – go get moving! Go outside, balcony, dance, do something active. All this will provide an additional flow of air into your body.

Your tummy should be ready to drink alcohol – do not drink on an empty stomach!

Neutralization of unpleasant symptoms already after drinking alcohol

a) Many doctors advise after a stormy feast to take a cup of honey in the morning. Its useful components will help to remove alcohol from the body.

b) Another way to fight a hangover is to go to the sauna.

c) If you can crawl to the bath, take a couple of regular aspirins along the way and drink them with 2 glasses of water. Then you can drink a very strong cup of coffee and eat some lemon and a thin slice of toast. After that, it’s time to soak in the shower.

d) Many people also advise drinking a Bloody Mary cocktail in the morning. It is done very simply: you need to mix vodka with tomato juice and add more spicy spices, well, from those that remained on the New Year’s table.

Traditional Russian Hangover Relief

1. Get a good night’s sleep.

2. Cleanse the stomach. We are missing the cleansing method here, just help your stomach.

3. Drink more liquid, water, juice or tea.

4. The most famous and favorite method among our people, called “corrector”, that is, drink a little of the drink that they drank the day before. Don’t overdo it! 🙂

5. A bottle of beer. See warning above.

6. Pickle! (Only without vinegar)

7. If you can already think about food, then hot broth or borsch is just right for you.

8. Kefirchik! Invigorates body and spirit

Still, the most important thing when you have a hangover is not to worry! Turn on the TV quietly or listen to pleasant and quiet music. You can just lie down and read some book or newspaper with a large print. Walk slowly. We recommend lifting the barbell and running a marathon only the next day. After that, your hangover will be forgotten until the next holiday! Good luck in this difficult task!

How to feel better after a hangover: nine tips from doctors

January 1 coincides with the first hangover of the year for many. How to deal with it as soon as possible so that the remaining holidays can be spent in good health, Paragraph learned from a narcologist and nutritionist.

At the request of Paragraph, psychiatrist, narcologist, head of the center for psychotherapeutic assistance to the population Yuri Vyalba and Ph.D., nutritionist, nutritionist, anti-aging medicine specialist Inna Kononenko listed a few simple tips that will help improve well-being the next after stormy alcoholic feast day.

In case of a hangover, a person needs to drink plenty of water – at least 2.5 liters of water, in addition to tea, soup / broth. Moreover, it is better if the water is alkaline, Vyalba drew attention:

“With alcohol intoxication, the body is “acidified”. Saturated alkaline water, which contains a lot of minerals, salts of natural origin, will help restore the acid-base balance.

For a couple of days, a person who has experienced alcohol poisoning is advised by a narcologist to follow a diet that will help “unload” the liver. A dairy-vegetable diet copes well with this task, for example, various cereals (buckwheat, rice), dairy and sour-milk products (milk, kefir, cottage cheese). It is better to abstain from the consumption of meat products during this period, Vyalba believes.

For those who have no contraindications (for example, intolerance, allergic reactions, diabetes mellitus, gastrointestinal diseases), to get out of a drunken state, the speaker of the “Paragraph” recommends trying the so-called honey load method – about four tablespoons of honey four times a day within two or three days.

“Honey has an excellent diuretic effect to relieve swelling (primarily of the brain). In addition, thanks to the consumption of honey, we get an energy effect, due to which liver detoxification is enhanced, ” – Vyalba explained.

Photo: Pexels

Especially for vitamins A, E, C, selenium. According to Kononenko, among the effects of vitamin E is the ability to prevent the process of depletion of one of our body’s main antioxidants – glutathione. As the nutritionist emphasized, in tandem with selenium, this effect is enhanced:

“This is especially true for people who are diagnosed with alcoholic liver disease. They usually have low levels of selenium in the body. And without selenium, the antioxidant system will not be able to function properly.”

Vitamin C is involved in restoring the level of glutathione in the liver after a person has consumed alcohol. Also, “ascorbic acid” prevents oxidative stress in the liver.

According to Kononenko, one of the dangers of consuming strong alcoholic beverages is their effect on the permeability of the intestinal wall. When it rises, bacterial toxins are more likely to enter the bloodstream and cause inflammation in the liver and other tissues.

“With the help of probiotics, the increased intestinal permeability will decrease, the production of the gastric mucosa will increase, the liver cells will be protected from damage to some extent,” , the doctor drew attention.

It would seem that it could be easier than to drink a little “for relief” in the morning after an evening full of alcohol. However, Vyalba does not support this idea, since in this way the body receives an additional portion of intoxication, in addition, the symptoms of alcohol dependence increase:

“A hangover, when a person’s health allegedly improves after drinking alcohol, is already an indicator that alcohol addiction is taking place.”

Photo: Sergey Lantyukhov / Paragraph

According to the narcologist, a glass of brine will not hurt if you are hungover. This drink contains potassium, magnesium and sodium salts in a balanced proportion. In addition, dill is a powerful antioxidant. As a result of taking brine, the body gets the opportunity to compensate for the loss of salts and electrolytes.

“In turn, salts and electrolytes restore the normal osmotic pressure of the blood plasma, reducing tissue swelling,” explained Vyalba.

Alcohol is known to have a strong effect on the nervous system. Quality sleep is one of the best ways to restore normal functioning as soon as possible.