This blog post explores the reasons behind repeated binge drinking within drinking culture and the innate human desire to avoid hangovers.
With the start of the semester and new student enrollment season, drinking gatherings are increasing around university campuses. During this period, department meetings, club activities, and social events among classmates become more frequent, naturally leading to more drinking. Especially for new graduates or freshmen, drinking often serves the purpose of building rapport with seniors and juniors, part of a traditional culture for forming relationships and setting the mood. For office workers, alcohol is also indispensable at company dinners, and it has become a key element even in gatherings with long-time friends. As seen in the wine offered at ancestral rites and the oath of brotherhood in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, alcohol has long transcended being merely a ‘drink to get drunk’ to become an important means of communication in our lives.
However, this culture doesn’t always yield positive results. Many people, after excessive drinking, inevitably struggle with hangovers that interfere with classes or work the next day. Given how frequently alcohol is consumed, understanding its effects on the body and knowing how to cope is crucial. Here, we will explore the process of ethanol entering the body and being broken down, along with the basic principles of hangover relief.
First, let’s examine hangovers and how alcohol is broken down in our bodies. A hangover refers to the unpleasant feelings, headaches, and physical and mental fatigue that persist for 1-2 days after waking up from intoxication. When alcohol enters the body, it is primarily absorbed in the stomach and small intestine, then travels through the bloodstream to the liver, which handles about 90% of alcohol breakdown. Here, alcohol is oxidized into acetaldehyde by an enzyme called ADH (Alcohol Dehydrogenase). This acetaldehyde is the primary cause of the hangover symptoms we experience. Acetaldehyde triggers toxic reactions in the body, leading to various physical responses such as vomiting, headaches, and difficulty breathing. The liver breaks down this acetaldehyde into acetic acid using another enzyme, ALDH (Aldehyde Dehydrogenase), and ultimately converts it into water and carbon dioxide for excretion. This process must proceed smoothly to reduce hangover symptoms.
Therefore, to quickly alleviate a hangover, it is necessary to enhance the activity of the ADH and ALDH enzymes and supply the liver with the energy essential for alcohol breakdown. Based on this principle, traditional hangover remedies and various recently developed methods are widely used.
Traditional hangover remedies include bean sprout soup and honey water. Asparagine, abundant in bean sprout soup, is an amino acid that aids hangover recovery by boosting the activity of the ADH and ALDH enzymes, facilitating the rapid breakdown of ethanol and acetaldehyde. Next, honey water serves as a rapid energy source, composed of the simple sugars glucose and fructose, providing quick energy to the liver. If we liken the liver to a factory, the asparagine in bean sprout soup acts like lubricant helping the machinery run smoothly, while honey water is akin to the fuel supplying power to the factory.
Recently, relatively modern hangover remedies like hangover relief drinks, hwanggeum (Scutellaria) drinks, and chocolate milk have also gained attention. Representative hangover relief drinks are made from the fruit and woody parts of the hwanggeum tree. This tree contains active substances called ampelopsin and hovenitin, which protect the liver and promote alcohol breakdown. Given that hwaggae was used as a traditional medicinal herb before being commercialized as a beverage, it can be considered a hangover remedy combining tradition and modernity. Chocolate milk combines the carbohydrates in chocolate with the alkaline properties of milk. The carbohydrates provide the liver with quick energy, aiding hangover relief, while the alkaline components of milk neutralize the acidic acetic acid, reducing the burden on the body.
Examining various hangover remedies reveals a common thread: all methods ultimately focus on breaking down acetaldehyde and expelling it from the body. To achieve this, moderating alcohol intake and avoiding excessive drinking is paramount. Just as the phrase “Long time no see, let’s grab a bite sometime” carries meaning beyond a simple meal, the invitation “Let’s have a drink sometime” also holds significance beyond a single drinking occasion. Alcohol isn’t merely a beverage to get drunk on; it serves a social role, connecting people and forming bonds. Therefore, to avoid excessive drinking and maintain a healthy drinking culture, it’s necessary to understand the principles and methods of hangover relief beforehand.
