Have 1 cup or a 16-ounce bottle of water for every 12-ounce beer or 4- to 6-ounce cocktail you drink. Your liver is already working overtime to get excess alcohol out of your body. Too much Tylenol — over 4,000 mg in a 24-hour period — while hungover can lead to dangerous liver swelling or liver failure. It’s easy to find tons of purported hangover headache “cures” that you can make at home and even buy in stores. But most of them have no reliable scientific research that proves they work. Sign up for our Health Tip of the Day newsletter, and receive daily tips that will help you live your healthiest life.

The possible triggering site

Learning what those are — typically by keeping a headache log — can reduce the number of headaches you have. If you want to avoid a hangover headache, the best thing you can do is think before you drink. It may be that avoiding or moderating alcohol intake is the best decision for you.Talk to your healthcare provider about alcohol use, which can have serious health and social consequences. A study of 400 people who experienced either migraine or tension headaches found that strong odors, especially perfumes, often triggered headaches (51). A 2016 study in 50 people with migraine found that eliminating migraine-triggering foods from the diet significantly reduced migraine attack frequency, duration, and severity (42). A cocktail headache is a headache that occurs within the same evening of drinking alcohol.

Quit your wine-ing?

alcohol and headaches

Strong odors like those from perfumes and cleaning products can cause certain individuals to develop headaches. Sipping on beverages that contain caffeine, such as tea or coffee, may provide relief when you are experiencing a headache. To discover whether a certain food is causing alcohol and headaches frequent headaches, you may consider trying an elimination diet that removes the foods most related to your headache symptoms. Thorne Research CoQ10 (previously Q-Best 100), which provides 100 mg of CoQ10 per 1-gelcap serving, is a good option for people who experience migraine.

Drinking without fear

  • However, darker liquors may still contain a high level of headache-causing congeners.
  • Your provider can rule out other illnesses and suggest treatment.
  • If a headache persists or worsens, visit a doctor for an examination and treatment recommendations.
  • There are no specific tests that healthcare providers use to diagnose tension headaches.
  • Have 1 cup or a 16-ounce bottle of water for every 12-ounce beer or 4- to 6-ounce cocktail you drink.

For instance, alcohol byproducts called congeners have been linked to headaches. Dark-colored alcohols like red wine, brandy, and whiskey may contain more of them. Whether or not alcohol is a migraine headache trigger is debatable.

alcohol and headaches

So it’s not always evident what’s in the alcohol you’re drinking. Some people may be predisposed because of the onset of other medical conditions, like asthma, sinus diseases, medication allergies or changes to the body’s immune response, he explained. Genetics and environmental exposures are another factor, Maskatia said. Treating health problems that cause headaches, such as high blood pressure, can eliminate head pain.

Some drinks can contain up to 36 grams of sugar for a 20-ounce serving. A 2014 study from the Center for Weight and Health at UC Berkeley found that fitness drinks like Gatorade were better for quick hydration after intense exercise. So they may get you hydrated faster than regular water after a night of drinking.

Take a 200- to 300-milligram (mg) NAC supplement at least half an hour before you start drinking. This could reduce the impact of acetaldehyde on your liver and make your hangover symptoms much less severe. For a hangover headache, also called a delayed alcohol-induced headache, experts believe that nerve chemicals involved in central pain control, like serotonin, are likely responsible. Many of these disturbances of the body’s natural physiology persist the next day, long after the alcohol is gone. Effects on hormones, blood chemistry, the sleep-wake cycle and inflammatory chemicals are also important in the thoroughly lousy feeling we have come to know as a hangover. The effects on other body systems are also important in the symptoms of alcohol intoxication.

alcohol and headaches