Electrolyte sachets are everywhere – but will they cure a festival hangover? | Hangover cures

TThe tickets are purchased, the programs have been announced and it is almost time to drag the tent of last year in the closet for a boost – and to expel some dead ear pier. And this summer, there is another festival accessory for which revelers do not travel: electrolyte tablets.

Presented as a faster route to rehydration than water, and a means of replacing the lost vital salts during high consumption and the party, the accent on festivals is the last touch of a global boom for electrolytes, because everyone, from triathletes to YouTubers, sings the praise of these super-hydrating mineral supplements.

Happy Mardids sells “electrolytes all night” for revelers; Holy Hydration says that its hydration powders are perfect for athletes and revelers, replacing the electrolytes and minerals lost in perspiration; While hydration ORS Affirms that his tablets can help people warn or recover from the hangover. The British Holland & Barrett Health Food Channel promotes electrolyte sachets and magnesium water as “Essentials Festival”.

But can they really take the edge of a wooden mouth, or soften the infamous “Tuesday blues” which follow a weekend flirt with substances of a less legal type?

Electrolytes are minerals that are vital for basic body functions, such as liquid levels, transmission of nerve pulses and blood insurance does not become too acidic. The main electrolytes are sodium, potassium, chloride, magnesium, calcium, phosphate and bicarbonates.

“They are carefully regulated in specific ranges of the body. Indeed, the levels outside of normal ranges – too high or too weak – can lead to deadly complications,” said Dr. Sammie Gill, specialist in the gastroenterology dietison and spokesperson for the British Dietic Association.

Fortunately, our body is doing an excellent job to maintain the correct balance of these chemicals, the kidneys playing a key role – so for healthy people, day by day, taking electrolyte supplements is not necessary, Gill said. “There are so many foods rich in electrolytes, including plants based on plants and dairy products. It is not something that people should worry. ”

A scenario where a healthy person may need electrolytes is after a vomiting or diarrhea. This can cause a significant loss of liquid and upset the balance of the essential minerals of the body such as sodium and potassium, in serious cases, rehydration with a properly balanced solution – such as oral rehydration salts – can be saved.

Electrolytes can be useful in other situations – “for example, during periods of intense or prolonged exercise over a duration, and in particular in hot climates, or if the individual is a particular heavy sweater,” said Gill.

And although the party in a field cooked in the sun is not quite the same as running a marathon, it could, in theory, lead to dehydration – which means that electrolytes can also be useful here. That said, Gill said that if you really need an electrolyte support, it is quite easy to do yours. “Simply mix 200 ml of water, 300 ml of fruit juice and a pinch of salt,” she said. “Cow’s milk is also naturally a rich source of electrolytes, including sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium. You also get additional nutrients, such as proteins, which electrolyte supplements do not provide.”

Whether the electrolyte sachets can facilitate wood or softening the accident after taking recreational drugs is another matter. A recent examination of British hangover products available on Amazon revealed that most contain modest quantities of potassium, sodium and vitamin C., but although dehydration is often blamed for misery that follows a night of consumption, science tells a more nuanced story.

When researchers led by Joris Verster of the University of Utrecht examined the evidence last year, they found that although alcohol leads to a certain loss of liquid, dehydration and hangover seem to be parallel results of alcohol consumption, rather than one causing the other.

In other words, although people are often thirsty in the morning after drinking and can also feel terrible, thirst does not reliably predict the intensity of a hangover – and drinking water during or after the consumption of alcohol has only a modest effect on the symptoms.

“Yes, the dry thirst and mouth are common the next morning, and an electrolyte sachet could help with these symptoms, but that will not touch the main symptoms such as headaches, nausea, fatigue or hangxia,” said Dr. Blair Aitken at the University of Swinburne in Melbourne, who studies the impact of drugs Cognition. “Current research points to inflammation, oxidative stress and the accumulation of acetaldehyde like the main engines of wooden mouth, not liquid or electrolyte losses.”

Nor is it a remedy for post-MDMA or Ecstasy committee, said Aitken. It is believed that these are drawn by a temporary drop in serotonin, bad sleep, dehydration and general physical and mental exhaustion. “You can’t just restore a complex neurochemical system with a supplement and wait until you feel normal again,” he said.

Interestingly, a small study in 2022 of the Imperial College London found no drop in mood after therapy assisted by MDMA in the clinical environment. “The authors suggested that the typical comedown could be more on the context and the expectation than the medication itself,” said Aitken.

Some ingredients from the Rave Recovery Packs can offer a small elevator – hydration, sugar, perhaps caffeine or other energy boosters, but these are not remedies. “The best you can do to support recovery would be sleep, hydration, food and time,” said Aitken.

That said, the use of electrolyte tablets after a night of dance, perspiration and drug or alcohol consumption, it is unlikely that it is harmful, he added. “If people want to use them for a little postparti support, that’s good – don’t expect a miracle solution.”