Here’s what not to do when you’re hungover

Whoever the wonderful person responsible for coming up with a hangover cure is, not only will they be made for life, but they will have the eternal gratitude of so many of us.

As we creep towards to the festive season, we also creep closer to the time of year when sore heads, bloodshot eyes, cat-litter mouth and being perma-dehydrated becomes a lot more common.

Aside from abstaining from alcohol, or riding out the feelings of death, there's very little which can protect us against a hangover.

However, there are a few things, according to Mamamia , which we do while we drink and in the sorry aftermath which do make our hangovers worse.

Here's what NOT do when hungover
1. Rely on sugar to get you through

This breaks our heart a bit. It's sometimes the very thought of a sugary boost from a fizzy drink or bag of sweets which gets us out of bed.

However, the combination of a sugar crash PLUS hangover is a lot for your poor, beleaguered body to go through — and all that alcohol from the night before contains a lot of sugar.
"You might not eat six slices of cake because you know it will hurt your stomach, but you'll then have six drinks with the same sugar content," Aaron White Ph.D, senior scientific advisor to the director of the US National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, told Buzzfeed .

2. Attempting to sweat it out

Believe it or not, some people do try to purge those toxins through some light exercise. But this can do more harm than good.

Alcohol is a diuretic, meaning it dehydrates the body, plus our thermoregulation also becomes impaired. Working out can exacerbate these unpleasant side-effects.

"You're so dehydrated already and devoid of sugars, fats, salts, minerals, and then you go and sweat it all out and take more of it out of the body," personal trainer Leila Lutz told Mamamia.

"You're just doubling up on the mess you did last night."

3. Shots when already drunk spell disaster

There is something almost painfully inevitable about a round of shots. Yet that moment when you agree to a cheeky Sammy B is precisely when you should take stock and re-assess.

"This causes our blood alcohol content to spike, potentially leading to a rougher aftermath than you'd usually have," the site advises.

"If you've got your heart set on shots, maybe go down that route at the start of the night. That way, you'll know exactly how much they affect you and avoid imbibing more than you need to."

4. Soaking the booze up at 3am

Again, that drunken, greasy snack is almost an inevitability. But it's their very greasy, salty nature which does you no favours.

Eating while drinking and after is good news, but it really does depend on what it is your putting in your mouth.

Like sugary snacks, as White tells Buzzfeed , "if these foods aren't part of your usual diet you'll likely encounter some gastrointestinal problems and heartburn, and feel more nauseated and bloated the next day".

Nutritionist Michele Chevalley Hedge also told Mamamia how you can improve on drunken favourites.

"[With kebabs] it depends where the ingredients are from and if they are full of trans-fats and preservatives. But it’s a better option than anything sugary, which just gives you a super blood-sugar spike (disastrous for falling asleep afterwards)."