Sadly, hangover cures are a myth, there’s no chemical that will make your hangover disappear other than pain killers, water and rest. Understanding exactly what’s happening helps though.

The headache itself is because as your body struggles for water, so does your brain. The brain is around 75% water, so as the water goes, the brain shrinks. This causes it to temporarily pull away from the inside of the skull, causing the nerves to become irritated, causing the headache feeling.

The way water is absorbed in the body is mainly via the gut, but it is regulated by sugar and salt. They ensure that the amount of water absorbed into your body is appropriate for your dietary intake, if there’s not enough salt and sugar in the gut, the water is simply urinated out.

The fragile/shaking effect is caused by a low blood sugar. While you sleep, your liver makes new sugars to prevent you from waking up without any usable energy in the morning.

Fizzy drinks actually speed up alcohol absorption, the gas causes your stomach to expand and empty quicker allowing the alcohol to get to the stomach walls quicker, where it is absorbed.

This is why carbonated “slow drinks” actually make you feel more drunk than shots initially, but we all know how dangerous the slow onset of a shot can be. The spike in blood alcohol caused by a shot is what intensifies the hangover in the morning, so slow and steady wins the race.

The same applies for “lining the stomach”, you may be tempted to have huge carby meals, but in fact fats will slow the entry of the alcohol in the stomach even better!

Like mum says, the best way to avoid feeling under the weather, is to put down the drink altogether.

Sam Fitzpatrick Final Year Medical Student, Cardiff University.