8 ms·

Does ibuprofen actually help with alcohol induced headaches? I've found the only things that can cure a hangover are time or more alcohol.

otikik 4y ago
Lots of water before going to bed (or ideally, combined with the alcohol intake, 2 glasses of water for every glass of alcoholic drink) is the best preventive measure I know. I guess drinking afterwards might also help.
- claudiawerner 4y ago
  I don't know how well they work (if at all) but there's quite a market for 'hangover cure' drinks in Japan[0], and I've heard of a tradition of drinking citrusy supplements or anything high in Vitamin C in Japan. It always sounded off to me, but I suppose it would help with mineral depletion. [0] https://jobsinjapan.com/working-in-japan/japans-famous-anti-hangover-drink-ukon-no-chikara/ https://jobsinjapan.com/working-in-japan/japans-famous-anti-...
  - xxpor 4y ago
    I wonder if they work because they make it easier to consume a lot of water, just due to the taste
  - samatman 4y ago
    I'm a believer. I don't care if it's superstition, I'll take a gram of C at the drop of a hat. I love the Japanese hangover drinks, E-Mergen-C is not quite as tasty but 30 of them take up the volume of 3 bottled C drinks, for the small kind. Works better before, but will improve disposition the morning of as well.
- bendbro 4y ago
  I've noticed this as well. I feel like staying awake very late, eating and drinking as I sober a little before going to sleep drunk helps too
- squarefoot 4y ago
  Can confirm that. If you're drunk, drink as much water as you can, expel it and drink again; this will help a lot to soften and shorten the hangover, effectively reducing the amount of alcohol in the blood.
- dj_mc_merlin 4y ago
  Also: salty/"consistent" food. Think burger/ramen. Prevents hangover 100% of the time.
  - Spivak 4y ago
    It works because it increases your water retention!
- antonymy 4y ago
  This is the method that works for me. If I go heavy on water between alcoholic drinks I can avoid having a hangover entirely, or at least reduce it to a very mild headache that Ibuprofen can deal with. The only downside is you will have to use the bathroom a lot.
krnlpnc 4y ago
Works well for me although the best remedy I’ve found is a few rounds of sparkling water at the end of the night
- galangalalgol 4y ago
  works for me too, but vitamin c powder (emergenC or whatever) seems like magic to prevent one before I go to sleep, along with lots of water. I'd love to know why that works so well.
  - mrguyorama 4y ago
    Next time try lots of water, without adding the vitamin C. I got absolutely blasted at my brother's wedding a few months ago, blasted as in I lost an entire hour of dancing and attempting to win an auction of whiskey that I don't even drink. My parents and family were astonished when I woke up the next morning at like 10am, very very groggy but with no headache and actively shoveling greasy hotel breakfast into my stomach to prepare for a 6 hour drive home. My secret? I was far too drunk to sleep when we got to the hotel so I stayed up drinking about 100oz of water over the course of an hour or so, while sobering up. Just drink water, you probably don't need the vitamin C, or if you somehow messed up your "electrolytes" or something, just sip gatorade. Most of a hangover is dehydration, or not having enough excess water in your blood to easily expel the literal vinegar the metabolism of ethanol creates.
    - galangalalgol 4y ago
      Yeah massive amounts of water os of course the standard. But the vitaminc/d powder really does do something extra. Its consistent and after a friend told us about it both my wife and I have had success with it after making a dilly mistake like have drinks on an empty stomach or not paying attention to the abv on a bottle. I have no hypothesis why it might work, but I'm absolutely convinced it does so, and well, vs water chugging. Its mainly just the headache you skip. It doesn't replace hydration or speed up metabolism of the alcohol. I think it may speed up conversion of alcohol metabolism byproducts, but I don't know why that would be the case.
sparker72678 4y ago
Same. Though, the article says he took, "a handful" which is a bit more than I'm willing throw down at once.
- matwood 4y ago
  IDK what a handful means in this case, but 800mg will knock out any headache I have. Obviously I don't take it very often.
  - jermaustin1 4y ago
    800mg is prescription strength, granted I usually just take 2 500mg and a cup of coffee any time I have a headache. IDK if it is the caffeine or the ibuprofen, but any headache will usually be gone within 30 minutes.
    - josefresco 4y ago
      My wife's doctor said the optimal does for an average adult is 600 mg (typically 3 pills) - he warned that going below that won't product the same results. When it's been prescribed, it's always 800 mg.
    - matwood 4y ago
      > 800mg is prescription strength Makes sense that my dr/nurse friends are the ones that told me to do 800mg when I use it (and it worked much better). I typically don't take painkillers, and ibuprofen isn't something to be taken everyday anyway.
- adamauckland 4y ago
  Ibuprofen has a really high LD50, at higher dosages it becomes anti-inflammatory.
aulin 4y ago
Lots of water to rehydrate and fresh ginger for the nausea. Ibuprofen only works for the headache, you still need to fix the rest.
csdvrx 4y ago
> I've found the only things that can cure a hangover are time or more alcohol. Hangovers are due to the aldehydes accumulated IIRC when your body clearance process for alcohol is overrun. NAC before alcohol or even better, Emoxypine prevents that. Other things might work (vitamin C, glycine) but are less efficient. Emoxypine is really a miracle cure!
- germinalphrase 4y ago
  I’ve never heard of NAC or Emoxypine - but here’s what Wikipedia says about the latter: “In Russia, emoxypine has a wide range of applications in medical practice. It purportedly exercises anxiolytic,[4][5] anti-stress, anti-alcohol, anticonvulsant, nootropic, neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory action.[citation needed] Emoxypine presumably improves cerebral blood circulation, inhibits thrombocyte aggregation, lowers cholesterol levels, has cardioprotective and antiatherosclerotic action.”
- nibbleshifter 4y ago
  Preloading on NAC does seem to work somewhat, will have to try Emoxypine sometime.
havblue 4y ago
It definitely helps with the associated upper back pain that gets amplified when I indulge too much...
TacticalCoder 4y ago
> I've found the only things that can cure a hangover are time or more alcohol. It's called the hair of the dog (that bit you): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_of_the_dog https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_of_the_dog
muststopmyths 4y ago
I’ve found it pretty effective. Usually I’ll wake up with a headache and pop 400mg advil with a lot of water and that’s good enough. Other times when the headache starts in the gap between drinking and sleeping I find that the same dosage works there too. I’m only talking 2-3 drinks here. I don’t drink often and am a lightweight:)
phreenet 4y ago
I have not had success with Ibuprofen and hangovers. My goto is water and 3x Aspirin.
jmrm 4y ago
An acquaintance who likes to party a lot, and have a job related to medicine, have small bottles of some B vitamins to inject themselves when they are pretty bad. AFAIK those are the medicine ER gives you when you have a really bad alcohol intoxication, so I believe this works.
banannaise 4y ago
Yes. In my experience, they don't fix the headaches, but they certainly take the edge off in a way other painkillers don't.
smileysteve 4y ago
Yes, nsaids thin your blood and vadodilate dehydrated blood vessels in your head, this may also help reduce acetate toxins. Caffeine as a mild stimulant then increases blood pressure and gives some adrenal pain relief (and was combined in Excedrin) Alcohol (hair of the dog) also vasodilates and provides some pain relief. Hydration is ultimately important. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) should not be taken as it increases your liver load. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0015963#s3 https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal...
nibbleshifter 4y ago
It helps a little. Having a cold beer within minutes of waking up works a lot better IMO, followed by a greasy breakfast and the painkillers.

otikik 4y ago

Lots of water before going to bed (or ideally, combined with the alcohol intake, 2 glasses of water for every glass of alcoholic drink) is the best preventive measure I know. I guess drinking afterwards might also help.

claudiawerner 4y ago
I don't know how well they work (if at all) but there's quite a market for 'hangover cure' drinks in Japan[0], and I've heard of a tradition of drinking citrusy supplements or anything high in Vitamin C in Japan. It always sounded off to me, but I suppose it would help with mineral depletion. [0] https://jobsinjapan.com/working-in-japan/japans-famous-anti-hangover-drink-ukon-no-chikara/ https://jobsinjapan.com/working-in-japan/japans-famous-anti-...
- xxpor 4y ago
  I wonder if they work because they make it easier to consume a lot of water, just due to the taste
- samatman 4y ago
  I'm a believer. I don't care if it's superstition, I'll take a gram of C at the drop of a hat. I love the Japanese hangover drinks, E-Mergen-C is not quite as tasty but 30 of them take up the volume of 3 bottled C drinks, for the small kind. Works better before, but will improve disposition the morning of as well.
bendbro 4y ago
I've noticed this as well. I feel like staying awake very late, eating and drinking as I sober a little before going to sleep drunk helps too
squarefoot 4y ago
Can confirm that. If you're drunk, drink as much water as you can, expel it and drink again; this will help a lot to soften and shorten the hangover, effectively reducing the amount of alcohol in the blood.
dj_mc_merlin 4y ago
Also: salty/"consistent" food. Think burger/ramen. Prevents hangover 100% of the time.
- Spivak 4y ago
  It works because it increases your water retention!
antonymy 4y ago
This is the method that works for me. If I go heavy on water between alcoholic drinks I can avoid having a hangover entirely, or at least reduce it to a very mild headache that Ibuprofen can deal with. The only downside is you will have to use the bathroom a lot.

krnlpnc 4y ago

Works well for me although the best remedy I’ve found is a few rounds of sparkling water at the end of the night

galangalalgol 4y ago
works for me too, but vitamin c powder (emergenC or whatever) seems like magic to prevent one before I go to sleep, along with lots of water. I'd love to know why that works so well.
- mrguyorama 4y ago
  Next time try lots of water, without adding the vitamin C. I got absolutely blasted at my brother's wedding a few months ago, blasted as in I lost an entire hour of dancing and attempting to win an auction of whiskey that I don't even drink. My parents and family were astonished when I woke up the next morning at like 10am, very very groggy but with no headache and actively shoveling greasy hotel breakfast into my stomach to prepare for a 6 hour drive home. My secret? I was far too drunk to sleep when we got to the hotel so I stayed up drinking about 100oz of water over the course of an hour or so, while sobering up. Just drink water, you probably don't need the vitamin C, or if you somehow messed up your "electrolytes" or something, just sip gatorade. Most of a hangover is dehydration, or not having enough excess water in your blood to easily expel the literal vinegar the metabolism of ethanol creates.
  - galangalalgol 4y ago
    Yeah massive amounts of water os of course the standard. But the vitaminc/d powder really does do something extra. Its consistent and after a friend told us about it both my wife and I have had success with it after making a dilly mistake like have drinks on an empty stomach or not paying attention to the abv on a bottle. I have no hypothesis why it might work, but I'm absolutely convinced it does so, and well, vs water chugging. Its mainly just the headache you skip. It doesn't replace hydration or speed up metabolism of the alcohol. I think it may speed up conversion of alcohol metabolism byproducts, but I don't know why that would be the case.

sparker72678 4y ago

Same. Though, the article says he took, "a handful" which is a bit more than I'm willing throw down at once.

matwood 4y ago
IDK what a handful means in this case, but 800mg will knock out any headache I have. Obviously I don't take it very often.
- jermaustin1 4y ago
  800mg is prescription strength, granted I usually just take 2 500mg and a cup of coffee any time I have a headache. IDK if it is the caffeine or the ibuprofen, but any headache will usually be gone within 30 minutes.
  - josefresco 4y ago
    My wife's doctor said the optimal does for an average adult is 600 mg (typically 3 pills) - he warned that going below that won't product the same results. When it's been prescribed, it's always 800 mg.
  - matwood 4y ago
    > 800mg is prescription strength Makes sense that my dr/nurse friends are the ones that told me to do 800mg when I use it (and it worked much better). I typically don't take painkillers, and ibuprofen isn't something to be taken everyday anyway.
adamauckland 4y ago
Ibuprofen has a really high LD50, at higher dosages it becomes anti-inflammatory.

aulin 4y ago

Lots of water to rehydrate and fresh ginger for the nausea. Ibuprofen only works for the headache, you still need to fix the rest.

csdvrx 4y ago

> I've found the only things that can cure a hangover are time or more alcohol. Hangovers are due to the aldehydes accumulated IIRC when your body clearance process for alcohol is overrun. NAC before alcohol or even better, Emoxypine prevents that. Other things might work (vitamin C, glycine) but are less efficient. Emoxypine is really a miracle cure!

germinalphrase 4y ago
I’ve never heard of NAC or Emoxypine - but here’s what Wikipedia says about the latter: “In Russia, emoxypine has a wide range of applications in medical practice. It purportedly exercises anxiolytic,[4][5] anti-stress, anti-alcohol, anticonvulsant, nootropic, neuroprotective and anti-inflammatory action.[citation needed] Emoxypine presumably improves cerebral blood circulation, inhibits thrombocyte aggregation, lowers cholesterol levels, has cardioprotective and antiatherosclerotic action.”
nibbleshifter 4y ago
Preloading on NAC does seem to work somewhat, will have to try Emoxypine sometime.

havblue 4y ago

It definitely helps with the associated upper back pain that gets amplified when I indulge too much...

TacticalCoder 4y ago

> I've found the only things that can cure a hangover are time or more alcohol. It's called the hair of the dog (that bit you): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_of_the_dog https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hair_of_the_dog

muststopmyths 4y ago

I’ve found it pretty effective. Usually I’ll wake up with a headache and pop 400mg advil with a lot of water and that’s good enough. Other times when the headache starts in the gap between drinking and sleeping I find that the same dosage works there too. I’m only talking 2-3 drinks here. I don’t drink often and am a lightweight:)

phreenet 4y ago

I have not had success with Ibuprofen and hangovers. My goto is water and 3x Aspirin.

jmrm 4y ago

An acquaintance who likes to party a lot, and have a job related to medicine, have small bottles of some B vitamins to inject themselves when they are pretty bad. AFAIK those are the medicine ER gives you when you have a really bad alcohol intoxication, so I believe this works.

banannaise 4y ago

Yes. In my experience, they don't fix the headaches, but they certainly take the edge off in a way other painkillers don't.

smileysteve 4y ago

Yes, nsaids thin your blood and vadodilate dehydrated blood vessels in your head, this may also help reduce acetate toxins. Caffeine as a mild stimulant then increases blood pressure and gives some adrenal pain relief (and was combined in Excedrin) Alcohol (hair of the dog) also vasodilates and provides some pain relief. Hydration is ultimately important. Acetaminophen (Tylenol) should not be taken as it increases your liver load. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0015963#s3 https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal...

nibbleshifter 4y ago

It helps a little. Having a cold beer within minutes of waking up works a lot better IMO, followed by a greasy breakfast and the painkillers.