What to do after dry January? Vidrate has the answers!

9 million people are estimated to be participating in Dry January this year, and the first night out on the town back after 4 weeks alcohol free could be a heavy one. 

If you don’t fancy nursing the mother of all hangovers the next day, Nick Hird from Vidrate have stepped in to advise the UK on how to properly hydrate and fight off the dreaded post night out grogginess. 

“Whether you’ve been participating in Dry January and had an alcohol free month, or you've seen sipping wine here and there; - the dreaded hangover the next day may put you off. Here are our top tips for preventing a rough post party. 

- Hydrate before drinking

'Dehydration is the main cause of feeling hungover, alongside vitamin depletion and excessively putting toxins into your body. By staying hydrated before drinking you’re giving your body a head start. You're supposed to drink 6-8 glasses of fluid everyday - so this gives you an idea of how much you should be drinking to stay hydrated.

- Make sure you eat

This is an obvious one, but one many people ignore. Don't start drinking on an empty stomach as this makes your body absorb the alcohol quicker. By eating a well-balanced meal before a night out, you slow down the body's alcohol absorption rate.

- Drink water with your alcohol

Alcohol is a diuretic, which stimulates your kidneys to produce urine, meaning it makes you lose more water than you take on board. Basically, you pee more than you drink, which means you are dehydrating yourself and with that you also lose some of the body's electrolytes.

Drinking a glass of water for every alcoholic drink keeps you hydrated and helps you retain some water, minerals and vitamins.

- Avoid fizzy drinks

Don’t drink non-alcoholic fizzy drinks, instead of water to try and fight off the hangover. Fizzy drinks actually increase the rate at which your body absorbs alcohol - so could make your hangover worse. Same with carbonated alcohol such as prosecco and champagne - the carbon dioxide speeds up your alcohol intake meaning you get drunker faster, resulting in a worse hangover.

- Don’t drink too much water

Don’t chug multiple glasses of water before bed as this might do more harm than good. Drinking water in excess means you’ll need to go to the toilet and can mess up your sleeping pattern.

Drink one glass of water before bed and keep another on your bedside table for when you wake up with a banging head and dry mouth. Think about adding a hydration powder, such as ViDrate, to your glass of water before bed to help replace the vitamins and minerals lost.

- Avoid coffee

Reaching for a cup of coffee on a hangover might seem like a good idea, but the caffeine dehydrates you further - making your hangover even worse.

- Have a power nap

Sleep is one of the best hangover remedies but when you’ve been drinking the alcohol disturbs your restorative sleep. Try and schedule in a power nap the next day, or if you don't have time make sure you get an early night so your body can recover.

- Exercise

Yes exercise! We know the last thing you want to do when your head is pounding is exercise. But even a short walk or jog will make you feel better due to the fresh air and endorphins released by physical activity.

- Ginger

If your stomach is unsettled and you keep getting waves of nausea then ginger is a great remedy. Ginger helps reduce inflammation and helps settle your stomach.”

Vidrate provide natural, healthy supplements and probiotics to help with hydration, health and well-being. https://www.vidrate.com.