For as long as people have been drinking alcohol, they’ve been trying to figure out a way to avoid its woozy, nauseated, sensory-amplified aftermath. But is there really any foolproof strategy for preventing a hangover besides, say, not drinking?
Scientifically speaking, no. There is no such thing as a hangover cure. In a review of 15 clinical trials of hangover-intervention methods, a team of researchers publishing in the British Medical Journal found that not a single one worked. They concluded:
“No compelling evidence exists to suggest that any conventional or complementary intervention is effective for preventing or treating alcohol hangover. The most effective way to avoid the symptoms of alcohol induced hangover is to practice abstinence or moderation.”
Abstinence? That’s no fun. So people continue to drink and to try to nurse their morning-after headaches. Common remedies include greasy breakfasts, over-the-counter painkillers, a jog in the park and folk treatments like tripe soup (Mexico) or raw eggs and hot sauce (U.S.). People say the best cure for a hangover is more alcohol — but put down that Bloody Mary. Your withdrawal symptoms will merely be postponed, not prevented.
Now an entrepreneur and neuroscience enthusiast in New York, Dave Shor, believes he’s finally achieved the holy grail: a drink called Mercy that supposedly prevents hangovers by replenishing a variety of key compounds in the body, including certain amino acids that help break down a toxic byproduct of alcohol processing.
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