Forget hair of the dog or a full English breakfast. According to scientists from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, you can't beat a cup of coffee and a couple of aspirin or ibuprofen when you're in the full throes of a hangover.
Drinking coffee and taking a couple of aspirin may be the best hangover remedy. Photo: Corbis
Less than a month ago UK researchers from the Royal Society of Chemistry were praising the hangover-relieving abilities of honey, suggesting the sugar (fructose) in honey helps your body break down alcohol into harmless substances.
But the Philadelphia-based experts disagree. Based on tests involving rats, they claim the combination of caffeine from coffee and the anti-inflammatory action of painkillers such as aspirin and ibuprofen is best for soothing an alcohol-induced thumping head.
Apparently the caffeine and anti-inflammatories combo blocks the effects of acetate, a chemical that's produced when your body processes alcohol (scientists believe it's the acetate in your body that causes headaches).
Since acetate levels start peaking in your body around four hours after drinking alcohol, the researchers suggest that's the best time to take the coffee-and-aspirin remedy.
There is a problem with taking aspirin - and to a certain extent ibuprofen - however. If you have a sensitive stomach (especially after drinking too much booze) aspirin can cause gastric irritation. And that's why many health experts recommend paracetamol as a painkiller, as it's more gentle on your stomach. But paracetamol isn't an anti-inflammatory drug, so it won't produce the acetate-blocking effect if you take it with coffee.
Have you tried any remedies for hangovers, natural or otherwise? Tell us what works for you.