Science Says Sprite May Be the New Hangover Cure

According to a study published in the September 2013 issue of Food and Function, Sprite can help cure those wicked hangovers. After testing over fifty beverages ranging from herbal teas to various other carbonated drinks, Chinese researchers found that the results pointed to the lemon-lime pop as an effective means of reducing hangover symptoms.

The science behind this has to do with how alcohol is broken down in the body after ingestion. The crap feelings of nausea, a bout of the spins and a throbbing headache isn’t actually caused by the alcohol but rather by acetaldehyde, an enzyme your body produces in an attempt to process all the booze you guzzled down.

Scientists tested beverages to see how consumption following alcohol would affect how long acetaldehyde takes to break down. The results showed that the usual go-to remedies, such as herbal teas, actually slow the digestion process down — making your hangover last longer than it should. If the length of time it takes for acetaldehyde to turn into acetate could be shortened, the duration of a hangover could actually be reduced. Soda water and Sprite sped up the conversion process, thus reducing your hangover.

So the next time you decide to throw a rager make sure to stock up on some 2-liters of Sprite in preparation for the morning after.

PicThx Sprite