Hangover cure breakthrough as eating popular kitchen staple can reduce effects by 50%

For those of us who've ever overdone it on the booze, we're all too familiar with the unpleasant aftermath of a hangover. From pounding headaches and disorientation to nausea and an upset stomach, the morning after a heavy night out is never a pretty sight.

Over the years, many home remedies for hangovers have been suggested, from pickle juice and fried eggs to the controversial hair of the dog. However, the secret to easing those pesky symptoms might have been hiding in your kitchen all along.

Researchers suggest that fruit could be the miracle hangover cure we've all been searching for, with experts finding that a delicious plant-based snack could reduce hangover effects by up to 50%!

This health benefit is believed to come from the naturally occurring sugar in fruit, fructose, which has been shown to significantly decrease the rate at which the body can eliminate alcohol.

Nutritionist Dr Rhonda Patrick discussed the research on a recent podcast, explaining that eating fruits such as grapes, watermelon, and bananas before a night out can lower the amount of alcohol in the blood and therefore lessen the hangover the next day.

READ MORE: 17 signs you could be a functioning alcoholic

Eating fruit the day after a night out could, in principle, help speed up recovery by replenishing lost salts and rehydrating the body. Dr Patrick points out, however, that this only applies to whole fruits, not fruit juices.

Juicing results in easily absorbed sugars being released into the bloodstream that can subsequently cause rapid rises and falls in blood sugar levels.

On the other hand, the sugars in whole fruit are absorbed more gradually, reducing the likelihood of experiencing symptoms of fluctuating blood sugar levels, reports Gloucestershire Live.

To take full advantage of the potential benefits of this approach to hangover relief, substantial amounts of fruit would need to be consumed. According to Dr Patrick, one gram of fructose for every kilogram of body weight can reduce the effects of alcohol by 31%.

For a man weighing 79kg, this would be equivalent to eating approximately five or six apples!

While talking on the FoundMyFitness podcast, Dr Patrick clarified: "Am I suggesting that fructose is an anti-hangover remedy? No. But this is an interesting mechanism by which food and fruit, in particular, may lessen some of the adverse effects of alcohol."

"Note that fructose from whole fruit, with the benefit of its fibre and micronutrients, is vastly different than highly refined fructose from fruit juices."

In a study highlighted by the nutritionist, researchers focusing on metabolic disorders examined how fructose impacts the body's ability to process alcohol in a group of 45 healthy men aged between 25 and 35.

Before participating in the study, all volunteers identified as light drinkers. For every gram of alcohol per kilogram of their body weight, they were given an equivalent amount of fructose, but not sourced from whole fruits.

The results indicated that fructose significantly reduced the duration of intoxication by about 30.7%, and it also increased the rate at which alcohol was eliminated from the body by approximately 44.7%.

Dr. Patrick reflected on the research findings, stating: "Eating some fruit with a meal before you drink may help lessen its negative effects and this could also involve mixing alcohol with fruit juice, which also contains fructose."

However, she warned against hastily opting for fruit-laden alcoholic beverages, pointing out that combining alcohol with fructose might lead to higher spikes in blood glucose and triglycerides than when consuming them separately.