Can Plants Really Protect You from a Hangover?

How will you celebrate the dawn of 2021? You probably won’t be at a big party, toasting friends all night long. However, you still might appreciate a way to start the new year without a hangover. That’s the message we got from one reader.

Q. I suspect people would like hangover remedies around this time of year. As a chemist, I can suggest that people rehydrate! Dehydration is the primary cause of a hangover.

What Causes a Hangover?

A. Dehydration has been blamed for hangover symptoms for decades. Surprisingly, though, scientists don’t actually know exactly why drinking too much makes you feel so terrible the next day (PLoS One, Dec. 31, 2010). Many people agree that dehydration causes the characteristic headache, whereas others blame congeners or acetaldehyde, a compound that the body makes from ethanol. In one study, researchers determined that a different metabolite, acetate, causes the delayed headache typical of a hangover. At least, they found that to be the case in rats, who unfortunately cannot tell you how bad they feel. In humans, free oxygen radicals formed at the same time as acetate may also contribute to symptoms.

Anti-Hangover Solution Tested:

A study from Germany suggests that other factors may be more important (BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health, April 30, 2020).  The scientists ran a double-blind placebo-controlled trial of a “food for special medical purposes.” It consisted of a combination of plant extracts, vitamins and minerals. They used two placebos in the study: one with vitamins and minerals only and the other with glucose.

More than 200 volunteers drank enough beer or wine to trigger a hangover. Then they consumed one of these solutions and recorded their symptoms.

Plants to Prevent a Hangover:

Some cultures have touted specific plants to treat hangovers. Specifically, flowers from kudzu (Pueraria lobata) were a traditional hangover remedy in some Eastern countries. However, Australian researchers determined that kudzu root is not safe or effective for this purpose (Alcohol, Nov. 2007). 

When the German scientists tested a supplement containing polyphenols extracted from five different plants together with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, they knew that previous research had identified each of the five as potential hangover remedies. They compared that supplement with two other treatments. One was identical to the first except it lacked the plant supplements and the other was a straightforward placebo consisting of glucose alone.

The investigators recruited 214 subjects and randomly assigned them to get one of these treatments. All treatments were administered in flavored water.

The participants who got the plant extract solution had less headache, nausea and restlessness the next day. The plants in the remedy were ginger root, ginkgo leaf, willow leaf, prickly pear fruit extract and acerola berry extract. The authors suggest a few other plants that might also be helpful: Asparagus flavonoids, fenugreek seeds, mango polyphenols and ginseng extract.

Neither the vitaminand mineral solution nor the glucose placebo made any difference in symptoms of veisalgia, the medical term for hangover.

Other Lessons from the Study:

Additionally, the researchers found a lot of individual variability in susceptibility to hangover. Some people had symptoms although they did not drink a great deal of alcohol, while others were less likely to also report symptoms after drinking more alcohol

The scientists also confirmed, perhaps unnecessarily, that hangover symptoms are caused by alcohol consumption. Dehydration apparently does not play an important role, nor do electrolytes ease the discomfort. 

The maker of the plant extract supplement (Fermenta GmbH) provided it and the placebo beverages, but did not provide funding or dictate the protocol.