It’s summer, and it’s the best time to spend with family and friends, but how do you avoid feeling the effects of a little extra indulgence?

The best way to avoid a hangover is not to drink alcohol. But if you are like me and enjoy imbibing from time to time, it’s good to have remedies handy. Here are some suggestions to help keep the drinkers among us healthier and happier.

Folk medicine often considers heavy drinking to be a sign of potassium deficiency. Honey, a perfect source of potassium, works with the body to overcome the craving for alcohol and helps an individual sober up.

Acidity

Animals and humans seek food and drink high in acid. Beer has a very high acid pH of 4.5. Alcoholic beverages that are high in acid may meet an instinctive need for acid. Coffee and tea have the same pH as beer.

Steaming

Go to a steam room first thing in the morning and detox your entire body, alternating with swimming to increase your oxygen intake. When my parents lived in Michigan, I used to go out and party a lot, and then my parents would take me to their health club and I would spend hours there alternating between steaming and swimming; before we left I would feel like a million bucks. Then it helps to go for a long walk in the sun doing deep breathing. If you are a regular casual drinker, I highly recommend you take dandelion root on an on-going basis. You may also want to take milk thistle, burdock root, yellow dock, and licorice root to keep your blood and organs detoxified. Some other helps follow:

  • Drink fruit juices. They contain fructose, which helps burn the alcohol faster and helps cleanse it from your body the next day.
  • Cysteine, a water-soluble amino acid, has been known to help protect against the damages of alcohol consumption.
  • Take willow bark, a natural pain reliever.
  • Replace the salt and potassium in your body with honey or a banana.
  • Drink plenty of water before, after, and during your drinking. Three glasses of water before going to sleep will help end the dehydration, which is a major cause of a hangover.
  • Really taste the drink. Savor it.
  • Take evening primrose oil capsules before drinking.
  • Drink only after eating.
  • Take vitamin Bs before and after drinking.
  • Take amino acids before and after drinking.
  • Drink drinks with cranberry or orange juice. I used to carry small packets of alfalfa juice powder or spirulina with me to mix into tequila and orange juice drinks.
  • Take vinegar and vitamin C.
  • Guarana will make you feel better the next day and contains 3-to-5% caffeine.
  • The next day, eat again to replenish nutrients.
  • Don’t drink beer in aluminum containers, including draft beer.
  • Be sure when you are out drinking, you breathe deeply and often. If you are dancing, you are getting oxygen and exercise to help counteract the negatives. On the way, home take many very deep breaths. And don’t drive or ride with anyone who has been drinking.