Beat the hangover: How vigorous exercise can save your morning after, says new study
Working out with a hangover is about as enjoyable as scraping your nails down a chalkboard. You’ve probably tried it: ‘sweating out the alcohol’ is one of many purported hangover cures. However, new research shows that regular exercise before a night out could be the key to alleviating the severity of a hangover and even reducing the likelihood of getting one. With the temptation to overindulge at an all-time high during the Christmas season, here’s everything you need to know.
The study’s methods
The research, published in the journal Addictive Behaviours, was undertaken on 1676 undergraduate students who had experienced at least one hangover in the past three months. All participants did at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity per week. Based on the previous three months, they then completed online questionnaires assessing their alcohol consumption patterns, physical activity levels and the frequency and severity of their hangover symptoms. Activity levels were scored by calculating the intensity of the activity against the number of hours they performed the activity.
The study’s results
The findings showed a notable association between physical activity and hangover symptoms. Unsurprisingly, people who consumed more alcohol were more likely to experience hangovers, and those hangovers were more severe (no sh*t). But what might surprise you, is that both the severity and likelihood of hangovers were reduced in people who engaged in vigorous physical activity (like running) across the three months. The authors of the study concluded that higher levels of exercise ‘reduced both the association between drinking and hangover likelihood’ and ‘the association between drinking and hangover severity’.
What does this mean for us?
You don’t need us to tell you that the most effective way to dodge a hangover is to drink in moderation – if at all. However, the study highlights how exercise better equips the body to handle the aftermath of a night out.
For one, exercise can improve sleep quality and duration. This means you’re likely to get a better night’s rest after drinking than if you hadn’t exercised, leaving your body more recovered and you feeling more refreshed the next day. Exercise also releases endorphins, which may help ease hangover pain, such as headaches and muscle aches. Additionally, research shows that alcohol triggers an inflammatory response that can worsen hangover symptoms, while exercise has been proven to stimulate the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines.
All that said, the study doesn’t specify how soon before a night of drinking you should exercise to yield the hangover-beating benefits. Though participants were asked to exercise for a minimum of 30 minutes per week, it would be useful to know whether those who had milder hangover symptoms exercised on the day of a night out drinking, or whether they simply exercised regularly over each week.
The participants were also of undergraduate age (typically 18-22), and their experience may not be reflective of older adults. Overall, though, the finding is an interesting discovery in an under-researched area of sports science – and one we're keeping front of mind this festive season.
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