Step 1: Rehydrate, Duh Alcohol is dehydrating. Along with the loss of water is a loss of minerals. You need both. Drink a liter of natural spring water with the addition of a total of 5 grams of Himalayan salt within the first two hours of waking up. Keep drinking water heavily until you pee at least twice. Additional magnesium is also a really good idea before bed, as it further assists with step 2, the reduction of acetaldehyde.
Step 2: Reduce the Toxic Burden of Acetaldehyde Excessive alcohol puts a strain on the body, requiring the utilization of vitamins and minerals to assist with recovery. One of those crucial minerals is molybdenum. Never in the history of TV medical dramas has the mystery ailment been severe molybdenum deficiency, but molybdenum is essential for the body’s production of chemicals that neutralize acetaldehyde. What the hell is acetaldehyde? It’s one of the main toxins that the body produces as a result of alcohol ingestion. If we have been drinking, we are likely depleting our stores of molybdenum rapidly, increasing our acetaldehyde sensitivity. It’s one of the reasons we feel hungover in the morning, and why our bodies then begin to crave molybdenum-rich foods like legumes. In Texas, at least, classic hangover food is tacos, nachos, and burritos—all of them chock full of beans. In the Mediterranean? Hummus, made from garbanzo beans. Even after a night of crushing Jack Daniel’s or ouzo, our instincts can be incredibly accurate, cutting across cultures and cuisines. But rather than gorge on nachos, the best idea would be to supplement with some molybdenum (300 mcg) prior to bed, and again in the morning. Studies have shown it to reduce regular aches and pains, which if nothing else will make tomorrow’s walk of shame a little easier to endure!
Step 3: Balance Your Neurotransmitters Alcohol is a gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) agonist, meaning that it produces more GABA in the brain. This is what results in the good, loopy feelings from drinking. Another neurotransmitter, glutamate, has the exact opposite effect on GABA. When you drink alcohol, after you are done with the flood of GABA, you experience a glutamate rebound where the body overcorrects for the problem with the release of excess glutamate. This is why you wake up so quickly and sleep so poorly, and it’s what leads to the anxious, light-headed, cracked-out feeling you can get from a hangover. To combat this, you should take things that support the GABA system. This is precisely why the “hair of the dog” seems to work. At least on a neurotransmitter level, you are getting more GABA in your system to balance out the glutamate. L-theanine, which occurs naturally in green tea, is great at mimicking the effects of GABA. Matcha, as we described in chapter 6, is the best source.