Preventing Hangovers: Avoiding that Headache

When it comes to drinking, it’s all fun and games until the next morning. Then, the hangover can pack a serious punch. Some people experience severe headaches and nausea that can last all day. For others, a hangover may include their overall body feeling bad and lacking energy. Whatever the symptoms, most of us can agree that hangovers are no fun and we’d love to never have one again. So, it is possible to avoid a head splitting hangover. While there’s no magic cure, you can take some steps in preventing hangovers.

Preventing Hangovers: How Can You Avoid It?

Limit Your Intake

Of course, the most obvious step for preventing hangovers is to limit your alcohol intake. You’re probably thinking, “well duh, but I want to drink.” However, if you really want to avoid a hangover, the best way to do it is to limit your drinks. For instance, you may want to carry a certain amount of cash, so you know you can only buy a few drinks.

Perhaps, you want to set a goal for only having three drinks. Use a tally mark system and mark your hand for each drink you purchase. Just find a system that works for you to know how to limit yourself. By doing so, you can be far more successful in preventing hangovers.

Try Drinks that Are Low In Congeners

During the process of making alcohol, toxic chemical by-products called congenersalso form. These congeners can increase the likelihood that you’ll suffer a hangover. In addition, they can actually make the hangover symptoms more intense and last longer. So, in hopes of preventing hangovers, you may want to stick with alcohol that’s low in congeners.

For example, vodka, gin, and rum are all very low in congeners. In fact, vodka contains almost none at all. So, sticking with alcohol that has a low number of congeners can be a good way for preventing hangovers.

Drink Plenty of Water.. and Then Some More

Dehydration can make hangover symptoms far worse. Since alcohol dehydrates, you’ll more than likely become dehydrated, making the next morning much worse. Therefore, it’s important to fight this by drinking plenty of water. Try mixing in a glass of water after every alcoholic beverage you drink. Not only will this help you stay hydrated, it can reduce the number of alcoholic drinks you have.

In addition to drinking water the night of drinking, try to drink plenty the next morning. Your body is still processing the alcohol in your system and water will help.

Proximate Cause in Felony DWI Cases | Charlotte DUI Lawyer

When charged with a felony DWI, the State must prove both impairment and proximate cause. So what does this term really mean?

Proximate Cause in Felony DWI

While every DUI starts the same, a felony DWI adds a new defense of proximate cause. In addition to usual defenses, we also address the cause of the accident. For example, we look at how the officer did the investigation and BAC level. But we also look at the accident facts as well. Because you are only guilty of a felony DWI is your impairment causes the accident. Otherwise, only a misdemeanor charge is proper. So what is proximate cause?

While law students focus on various definitions, it really is just commonsense. Either your impairment caused the accident and resulting injury or it did not. For example, running a red light and crashing in an intersection probably is proximate cause. However, sliding on ice probably is not. In addition, if another driver strikes your vehicle, any impairment would not be an issue. After all, you did not cause the accident, but you can still face a DWI. Even though this may not seem right, it is still better than the alternative. Rather than prison time, most folks prefer to pay a fine and get a limited driving privilege.

So What About Driving in Bad Weather

Whether it be hard rain or ice / snow, this is where the proximate cause issue gets a little harder. For example, if driving too fast for conditions and you lose control, is the impairment or bad weather to blame? As a legal matter, only lawyers are curious. On the other hand, juries are not sensitive to these distinctions. Instead, they will most likely convict you based on the emotions of seriously injured or killed victims. Moreover, innocent victims of drunk drivers are exactly why DUI laws are so harsh. So if you lose your proximate cause Motion, we do not recommend you take your chances at trial. Otherwise, even worse things can happen. Better know when to hold’em and when to fold’em.

Picking Poisons: Is There a Difference in Alcohols?

You may have a preference when it comes to picking poisons. Some people say ‘no way, tequila always makes me sick,’ or ‘I love being rum drunk’. While these are just common things for drinkers to say, it does make us wonder, do different types of liquor have different effects on your intoxication? In short, no. BAC is BAC no matter what alcohol causes it to rise. Alcohol is typically served in a “standard serving” at restaurants and bars. The standard serving of alcohol equals about 1.5 oz. of an 80 proof spirit (40% alcohol). It does not matter if the liquor is whiskey, gin, tequila, or rum. All alcohol has the same effect on the human body.

Picking Poisons: Is There a Difference in Alcohols?

While there is really no variation in how liquor hits your system, there is a variation based on how you take it. For instance, once you start mixing alcohol with juices, seltzers, syrups, and other “mixers”— your body can begin to react differently. So while BAC doesn’t vary based on alcohol, intoxication may vary based on what’s in the mix… One of the most serious “mixers” is Red Bull (or any other kind of energy drink). The combination of caffeine and lots of B vitamins with alcohol can cause people to have different types of reactions. Sometimes more severe.

Pick your proof

Another consideration is that not all alcohol will be 80 proof. When you order a cocktail, there may be a blend of 80 proof and 120 proof liquor. Even if the drink still has 1.5 oz. of liquor, the alcohol content will not be the same. When you ask yourself the magic question, ‘how many drink have I had’, remember to count both your servings and the alcohol proof when trying to determine whether to call that Uber or stay out longer.

Congeners in Alcohol

Finally, alcohol does contain a product called ‘congeners’. These are basically the leftovers from the process that creates alcohol. They can change an alcohol’s color and flavor. In some cases, your body could be sensitive to certain congeners. So, it is possible that you may feel or act differently when consuming a certain type of alcohol based on how you process it.

However, congeners will not affect your BAC or the amount of alcohol in your bloodstream. So next time you hear your friends say “I love being rum drunk,” consider that it’s not so much the alcohol, as it is maybe the mixer or the congeners. So, what we’ve learned is that when it comes to picking poisons, it’s all in preference. One versus the other isn’t going to make a huge difference in intoxication level.