For anyone who anticipates having a glass or three more than usual this Christmas there's good news. Scientists from The Royal Society of Chemistry say forget hair of the dog, painkillers and caffeine when you have a killer hangover and have honey instead.
Sugars in honey help your body break down alcohol toxins. Photo: MorgueFile, hotblack
The best morning-after breakfast, say the experts, is honey on toast - heavy on the honey. Why? Because it contains fructose (fruit sugar), and fructose helps your body break down the alcohol in your system into harmless substances.
The scientists explain that the acetaldehyde that the first substance the body breaks down alcohol into is one called acetaldehyde. However acetaldehyde is a toxin, which explains why your head throbs, your stomach feels queasy and you feel like throwing up the morning after having a few too many.
But fructose helps break down acetaldehyde into another substance called acetic acid, which is less toxic and eventually gets broken down into carbon dioxide (so it's expelled naturally when you breathe out).
And if you have your honey on toast, it provides your body with potassium and sodium, which also help your body process alcohol.
Dr John Emsley, an expert at The Royal Society of Chemistry, also issued advice on how to avoid having a hangover in the first place. Having a glass of milk before your first alcohol drink, he says, could slow down the rate at which alcohol is absorbed into your bloodstream (it's a similar idea to lining your stomach with food).
If you're not a fan of honey, there are other natural hangover remedies you can try. If you have a favourite hangover remedy, why not share it with us?