Lena Savoie
Waking up with a hangover after a night of heavy drinking is an unpleasant experience. While there is no quick fix to sober up, there are several strategies to help you feel more alert and ease the pain. Time is the only true solution, as your liver needs time to metabolize the alcohol in your system. However, drinking a large glass of water before bed can help rehydrate your body, and leaving another glass on your nightstand can aid in hydration throughout the night. Eating before drinking can also help slow down the absorption of alcohol, and snacking while drinking can help further slow the absorption rate. Although it won't speed up sobering up, caffeine may help you feel more alert, and a cold shower can provide a short burst of alertness. It is important to be mindful of your alcohol intake to avoid intoxication, and tracking your drinks can help prevent overconsumption. Ultimately, allowing time for your body to process the alcohol is the most effective way to sober up.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Time taken to sober up | Depends on the volume of alcohol consumed, alcohol content, food intake, body weight, liver function, and sex |
| Ways to sober up quickly | There is no effective way to sober up quickly other than to stop drinking and allow time to pass |
| Ways to feel more alert | Caffeine, cold showers, eating, sleeping, or exercising |
| Ways to prevent intoxication | Counting drinks, slowing down, eating before/during/after drinking, drinking water, and limiting alcohol intake |
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What You'll Learn
The only way to sober up is to give it time
It is impossible to sober up quickly. Time is the only solution. While certain techniques may help a person feel more awake, they will not eliminate alcohol from the blood more quickly and will not lower the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level. The liver needs time to filter blood and remove alcohol from the system. It takes the body about one hour to metabolize (eliminate) the alcohol within one standard drink. This equates to about 2.5 hours if someone has a BAC of 0.4, 5 hours with a BAC of 0.08, and 10 hours with a BAC of 0.16. The liver eliminates alcohol at a rate of 10 to 30 mg/dL per hour, translating to reducing BAC by about 0.015 per hour.
The amount of time it takes to sober up primarily depends on how much alcohol has been consumed. The volume of alcohol consumed and other factors can influence how quickly your BAC rises and how long it takes for alcohol to leave your body. The higher the alcohol content, the longer it can take to sober up. The more alcohol you drink, the longer it will take for it to leave your body.
Although people cannot sober up more quickly, the following approaches may help them feel more alert and appear more sober. Caffeine may help a person feel alert, but it does not break down alcohol in the body. A cold shower may make a person alert for a short period, but they are still impaired. Eating before, during, and after drinking can help slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream. However, eating after drinking will not speed up its elimination once it is in your system.
The best way to sober up is to get a good night's sleep. Throughout the night, your liver will have time to metabolize (break down) all the alcohol in your system. Although you'll fall asleep easily enough when intoxicated, your sleep will probably be fragmented and disturbed. Drinking a big glass of water before you go to sleep can help counteract the dehydrating effects of alcohol. Leaving another glass of water by your bedside to sip when you wake up is also a good idea.
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Sleep helps your body recover
While drinking alcohol may help you relax and fall asleep, it can also cause sleep disruptions and poor sleep quality. Alcohol can negatively impact your sleep by interfering with your body's circadian rhythms—the biological patterns that operate on a 24-hour clock. It can also affect the production of melatonin, the hormone that induces sleep. Additionally, drinking alcohol can lead to insomnia, a sleep disorder characterised by difficulty falling and staying asleep.
Despite the negative impact of alcohol on sleep quality, getting a good night's sleep is one of the most effective ways to sober up from alcohol consumption. When you sleep, your body enters a restorative state, allowing your liver to metabolise and break down the alcohol in your system. The liver contains an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase, which helps remove alcohol from your body through breath, sweat, and urine. On average, the liver takes about an hour to break down one unit of alcohol. Therefore, getting a full night's rest gives your body the time it needs to process the alcohol and reduce your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level.
It is important to note that drinking alcohol can disrupt your natural sleep patterns and cause fragmented sleep. You may experience repeated wakings and low-quality sleep throughout the night. Additionally, alcohol can affect your breathing by interfering with the brain's ability to receive chemical messages involved in respiration. This can increase the risk of pauses in breathing and make it harder for your body to naturally arouse and recover from these pauses.
To optimise your sleep and aid in the recovery process, it is recommended to drink a large glass of water before bed to counteract the dehydrating effects of alcohol. You can also leave another glass of water by your bedside to sip throughout the night. Additionally, it is advised to avoid over-the-counter pain relievers, especially those containing acetaminophen, for at least 25 hours after consuming alcohol to prevent digestive tract irritation. While techniques like drinking coffee or exercising may help you feel more alert, they do not accelerate the removal of alcohol from your system.
In summary, while alcohol may initially induce sleep, it can disrupt your sleep quality and cause negative long-term effects on your sleep patterns and overall health. Getting a good night's sleep is one of the most effective ways to sober up, as it allows your body to rest, recover, and metabolise the alcohol. During sleep, your liver works to break down the alcohol in your system, reducing your BAC level. However, it is important to be mindful of the potential sleep disruptions caused by alcohol consumption and take steps to optimise your sleep environment and hydration levels.
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Drink water to stay hydrated
Drinking water is an important part of staying hydrated when consuming alcohol. Alcohol is a diuretic, which means it promotes water loss through urination. This can lead to dehydration, so it is important to drink plenty of water to counteract this effect.
Before you go to sleep, drink a large glass of water. This will help to rehydrate your body and counteract the dehydrating effects of alcohol. It is also a good idea to leave another glass of water on your nightstand so that you can take sips throughout the night and when you wake up.
Drinking water before bed can also help reduce the effects of a hangover the next morning. Alcohol can disrupt your sleep and contribute to feelings of hungover. Drinking water will help to rehydrate your body and may help you feel more alert and awake when you wake up.
It is also important to avoid salty foods when drinking alcohol, as these can contribute to dehydration. Eating before, during, and after drinking can also help slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream, giving your body more time to process it.
While drinking water is an important part of staying hydrated and reducing the effects of alcohol, it is important to note that it will not speed up the process of sobering up. The only way to effectively sober up is to give your liver time to metabolize the alcohol.
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Caffeine and exercise can make you feel more alert
While it is impossible to sober up quickly, caffeine and exercise can help you feel more alert if you've been drinking.
Caffeine is a powerful stimulant that can improve both your physical and mental performance. It is a naturally occurring organic compound found in tea leaves, yerba mate, coffee beans, cocoa beans, kola nuts, and guarana berries. Caffeine blocks the adenosine receptors in your brain, which is a chemical that builds up in your body throughout the day and causes you to feel sleepy in the evening. This is why you feel awake and alert after a cup of coffee. However, consuming caffeine at the wrong time could disrupt your sleep, so it should be used mindfully.
Exercising after drinking can help wake up your body and make you feel more alert. However, there is no strong evidence to suggest that exercise helps metabolize alcohol any quicker. The liver takes about an hour to break down one unit of alcohol, so drinking faster than this will cause your blood alcohol content to rise.
Combining caffeine and exercise is not advisable for everyone, as it can cause dopamine stacking, which can impact your mental health. It is important to be mindful of when you consume caffeine, as it can disrupt your sleep. Downing a coffee before a run, for example, means the stimulant could still be affecting you later in the day, disrupting your sleep.
If you are looking to sober up in the morning, the best way is to get a good night's sleep. Throughout the night, your liver will metabolize the alcohol in your system. Drinking a large glass of water before bed and keeping another glass of water by your bedside is also recommended to help rehydrate your body and counteract the dehydrating effects of alcohol.
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Eat before, during and after drinking to slow alcohol absorption
Eating before, during, and after drinking can help slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream. This is because the body closes a valve at the bottom of the stomach when digestion occurs, slowing the rate at which alcohol enters the intestines and is subsequently absorbed. Eating before drinking can slow down the rate of alcohol absorption in your body.
Foods high in protein, fiber, and fats are more difficult to digest, so they slow food transit the most. Foods that may help slow digestion before drinking include whole carbohydrate sources, such as brown rice, pasta, and oats, and lean protein sources, like eggs, salmon, and chicken breast. Avocados, being rich in monounsaturated fats, are also one of the best foods to eat before drinking alcohol. That's because fat takes much longer to digest than protein or carbs, which can help slow the absorption of alcohol into your bloodstream. Bananas are another excellent snack to have on hand before drinking to help slow alcohol absorption into your bloodstream.
Eating during drinking can increase the rate of alcohol elimination from the bloodstream by 25-45%. Typically, the best options will be foods that contain a mixture of protein, fat, and carbohydrates.
While eating after drinking won't speed up alcohol elimination once it is in your system, it can help ease a hangover. Snacking on bland, easy-to-digest foods such as toast, crackers, or pretzels may boost your blood sugar levels and settle your stomach.
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Frequently asked questions
Time is the only way to sober up. Your liver needs time to metabolize the alcohol in your system. On average, it takes the body about one hour to metabolize the alcohol within one standard drink. However, drinking coffee, taking cold showers, eating, sleeping, or exercising may help you feel more alert and appear more sober.
Drink a large glass of water before you go to sleep to rehydrate your body. Leave another glass of water on your nightstand and take sips whenever you wake up.
Avoid taking over-the-counter pain relievers. You need to wait 25 hours after drinking alcohol to take ibuprofen and avoid products with acetaminophen.
Keep track of what you're drinking, how much you're drinking, and how fast you're drinking. You can also try spacing out your drinks by leaving an hour between each drink to prevent too much alcohol from entering your system at once.
Eating before, during, and after drinking can help slow the absorption of alcohol into the bloodstream. However, avoid salty foods as they can lead to dehydration.
