As you head out to get your party on and celebrate the New Year, you may want to keep Gwyneth Paltrow‘s hangover cures handy.
Paltrow shared her favorite hangover cures on her GOOP email newsletter this week.
“We all know what happens on NYE so here is our best to help you prepare for the day after,” writes the 39-year-old actress.
Paltrow cites medical advice from professionals including Dr. Frank Lipman, who explains the physiology of a hangover and provides quite possibly the best remedy in the newsletter: It is “essential to drink a lot of water while drinking and before you go to bed… it can prevent a hangover or at least lessen one.”
Paltrow swears by Mercy “health elixir” — a drink “packed with amino acids, vitamins, minerals and herbs,” and even suggests mixing it with alcohol to create a “hangover preventing cocktail.” She also discloses that she is an investor in the company.
Another recommendation includes taking Resolve — a Paracetamol-based over-the-counter remedy similar to Alka seltzer, which is aspirin-based. (Note: This remedy came from a pharmacist in London. Paracetamol is called acetaminophen in the United States.)
Other remedies include “hair of the dog,” — drinking more alcohol the next day in the form of the classic Bloody Mary; eating protein; and sticking to wine or champagne.
Some of the suggestions were just plain baffling, according to Dr. Michael Lucchesi, including Paltrow’s suggestion of hydrotherapy in the form of a hot steam bath.
“Alcohol is a diuretic,” Lucchesi tells the NY Daily News. “Why would you want to engage in an activity that would cause you lose more water and salt?”
He also shoots down the vitamin supplements recommended by Paltrow and Dr. Oz.
“Most of these are totally water soluble,” he said. “If you’re drinking water through out the evening, you’ll just urinate them out.”
Some of the more practical tips included eating something; drinking plenty of water; and taking a pain reliever such as ibuprofen or aspirin for a headache. Alka-Seltzer is also not a bad choice since it has salts in it.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
See the full list of Gwyneth Paltrow’s hangover cures
photo: Patrick Hoffman/WENN
