As part of their work, British researchers have focused their attention on grandmother's remedies for hangovers. According to the results, all of these tips would have no scientific basis.
In February 2021, a study conducted in the United Kingdom concluded that each person spent around two years of their life in a state of hangover. In 2019, a court in Germany even ruled that veisalgia , its scientific name, was a real disease. Grandmother's remedies to try to alleviate the aftermath of a drunken evening are legion. Examples include drinking water or preparations made from different fruits such as "nashi" pear (Pyrus pyrifolia), or even alcohol like Fernet-Branca.
What if these remedies were useless? According to a publication in the journal Addiction on December 31, 2021, grandmother's hangover tips have no scientific basis . Epidemiologist Emmert Roberts of King's College London and lead author of the study says that "the evidence for these remedies is of very low quality" . According to her, more serious assessments must be provided.
Emmert Roberts and his team reviewed 21 existing trials including placebos and involving 386 participants. These same tests concerned the famous pear juice, but also red ginseng or cloves. According to the researchers, certain remedies somewhat alleviated the symptoms of a hangover. On the other hand, evaluation methods do not constitute sufficient proof of their effectiveness.
It must be said that the trials in question were based on the evaluation of the statements of the volunteers themselves. However, for the British researchers, the ideal would have been to define a standard symptom scale . Additionally, none of the remedies were featured in more than one study. Thus, none of the essays were peer-reviewed and therefore did not have a satisfactory level of rigor . There are also some studies whose choice of participants is quite curious, namely only male subjects.
Today, clove extract, but also tolfenamic acid and pyritinol seem to be strong candidates in the fight against hangover symptoms . Nevertheless, the evidence is lacking and further tests will have to be carried out to provide more certainty. Finally, Emmert Roberts believes that his work is essential to counter the various unfounded information that circulates abundantly in the media and on social networks.
