8 Things to Avoid So You Don't Make Your Hangover Worse

It’s Saturday, 11am. One sliver of sunlight has found its way through the curtains and straight onto your face. Your mouth feels like the inside of a shoebox. You reach for your phone, check the time, and start trying to work out how much you actually drank. Five? Seven? Did the shots count?

The thing is, a lot of how you feel this morning was decided the night before. Skipping dinner because the reservation was at 9pm. Keeping pace with a friend who drinks faster than you. Saying yes to one more round at 1am. None of these feels like a big deal at the time. But together, they can make your hangover worse.

The good news is that many of the things that make hangovers worse are habits you can change without giving up your social life. Here are eight of the biggest ones.

1. Drinking on an Empty Stomach

Picture an expressway at 3am. No traffic, nothing slowing anyone down. That's roughly what happens when alcohol reaches an empty stomach. Alcohol is absorbed more quickly, with most absorption taking place once it reaches the small intestine, so your blood alcohol level can rise faster.

Food works like traffic. It doesn't stop the cars, it just slows everything down. Singapore's Health Promotion Board notes that a full stomach helps delay how quickly alcohol enters your bloodstream, although it still gets there eventually. Dinner won't keep you sober, but it slows down how quickly alcohol is absorbed.

You finish work late, head straight to after-work drinks in Tanjong Pagar and promise yourself supper later. By the time the prata arrives, you've already missed the benefit of having food in your stomach before those first few drinks. If you know a big night is coming, start with a proper meal. You can also take a pre-drinking supplement like DrinkAid, 15 minutes before your first drink as part of your preparation. You'll find more ideas in our guide on how to prepare for a night of drinking.

2. Drinking Too Quickly

Your body can only process alcohol so quickly. Singapore's Health Promotion Board notes that it takes roughly an hour to eliminate one standard drink, although this varies from person to person. When you drink faster than your body can keep up, your blood alcohol level rises more quickly.

The problem is, drinking fast does not always feel like a decision. It can happen naturally when everyone around you is doing the same. Someone calls for a yam seng at a wedding dinner, another round arrives before you've finished the first, or you're thirsty and that first beer disappears in ten minutes.

You should slow things down, put your glass down between sips and give yourself a bit more time between drinks. Alternating with water or another non-alcoholic drink can help too.

3. Not Hydrating Along the Way

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), alcohol suppresses vasopressin, a hormone that signals your kidneys to hold on to water. With that signal muted, you lose more fluid than usual, which explains the toilet queue that never seems to get shorter.

The mild dehydration that follows likely feeds classic hangover symptoms such as thirst, fatigue and headaches. If you're also sweating through a humid Singapore night or a packed dance floor, that's additional fluid your body is losing.

The fix isn't complicated. Try alternating alcoholic drinks with water throughout the night. Ask for a jug for the table so it's easier to keep drinking water as you go.  You can also take DrinkAid after your last drink as part of your post-drinking routine. Then have another glass of water before bed if you're thirsty.

Then have another glass before bed if you're thirsty.

4. Not Getting Enough Sleep

Alcohol might help you fall asleep faster, but the sleep itself is often worse. NIAAA notes that sleep after drinking can be more fragmented, with people waking earlier than usual.

Then there is the late night itself. Last call at 3am, a Grab ride home, a bit of scrolling before bed, then an 8am alarm because you already made brunch plans. Even without the alcohol, that is not much sleep to work with.

You cannot completely avoid the effect alcohol has on sleep, but you can avoid making it worse. If you know it is going to be a late night, try not to pack the next morning with early plans. A few extra hours of sleep will usually feel better than forcing yourself up after five.

5. Choosing Drinks High in Congeners

Congeners are compounds formed during fermentation and ageing that contribute to a drink's flavour and aroma. Darker spirits such as bourbon generally contain more congeners than clearer spirits such as vodka.

In a 2010 study comparing bourbon and vodka, participants reported feeling worse the morning after bourbon. The same study found that alcohol itself had a much bigger effect on how rough people felt than congeners did, so switching to vodka will not save you if you are doubling the rounds.

Still, if one drink reliably leaves you feeling worse, like the cognac that keeps getting topped up at a Chinese wedding dinner, that is worth paying attention to. Choosing a lower-congener drink may help some people, but how much alcohol you drink matters far more.

6. Smoking While You Drink

For many people, drinking and smoking go together. One cigarette outside the bar can easily turn into several by the end of the night, especially if you only smoke socially.

Smoking more while drinking may also leave you feeling worse the next morning. Nicotine and alcohol affect the body in different ways, and combining the two can add to how rough you feel after a heavy night.

If you smoke, cutting back while you drink is one less thing for your body to deal with the next day.

7. Reaching for "Hair of the Dog"

The idea sounds tempting: have another drink in the morning and take the edge off. For a while, it might even feel like it is working.

The problem is that the relief is only temporary. You are not fixing the hangover, just delaying it while your body has more alcohol to deal with.

That is why a boozy brunch is not really a recovery plan. Another drink might make you feel better for a short while, but it can also make your hangover worse by dragging things out instead of giving your body time to recover.

8. Expecting Coffee to Fix It

Ah, the kopi gao. If anything feels like a cure, it's that first sip at the coffee shop downstairs.

Coffee can make you feel more alert, but it does not cure a hangover or make your body clear alcohol faster. NIAAA lists coffee alongside showers as things that won't cure a hangover, because ultimately your body needs time to recover.

You don't need to give up your morning cup. Enjoy it, just pair it with water and something gentle to eat. For what actually helps once the hangover has arrived, our roundup of hangover cure options separates the useful from the hopeful.

Better Mornings Start the Night Before

How you feel the next morning often comes down to what happened the night before. Eating first, slowing down, drinking water and getting enough sleep won't guarantee a hangover-free morning, but they can make a difference.

If you'd like some extra support, DrinkAid hangover pills is designed to be taken before your first drink as part of a planned routine, supporting how your body deals with acetaldehyde, the toxic by-product created when alcohol breaks down. It works alongside the basics, not instead of them. Pacing yourself still matters, because drinking more is the surest way to make your hangover worse.

FAQs

What are the most common things that make hangovers worse?

Drinking on an empty stomach, drinking quickly, skipping water, cutting sleep short, choosing darker drinks and smoking are the biggest culprits. Relying on more alcohol or coffee the next morning tends to drag things out rather than help. The total amount you drink remains the strongest factor.

Does mixing drinks make your hangover worse?

Not on its own. NIAAA notes that the more alcohol you drink, the worse the hangover tends to be, regardless of whether it's beer, wine, spirits or a mix.

How long do hangover symptoms last?

They usually peak when your blood alcohol returns to around zero and can last 24 hours or longer. If you notice repeated vomiting, confusion or difficulty staying awake, seek medical help, as these can signal something more serious than a hangover.

Can you completely prevent a hangover?

The only guaranteed way is to not drink or to keep your intake to a minimum. Short of that, eating beforehand, pacing yourself and staying hydrated make the next morning easier to handle.