How to prevent a hangover

In a few days from now the card parties will start with their excesses by way of gluttony and gambling. And the familiar feeling of nausea when morning seems to come a little earlier than usual accompanied by a nagging pain in the head and an aversion to bright light.

And yet, hangovers can be avoided since most people have their favourite remedies to wake up alert if not exactly smelling of roses. Which isn't an invitation to drink more "" or at least it shouldn't be "" but since drinking late into the night on a practically empty stomach isn't likely to be exactly the health tonic your doctor ordered, some of these suggestions might actually help you survive the mornings after the night before.

Most friends who're preparing for a night of heavy drinking take the trouble to have a bowl of yoghurt just before stepping out. Whether it's the bacteria that does the trick, or the fats in it that line the stomach, it does seem to work, but dahi, say frequent party-goers, is for the kids who don't dare bottom's up for fear their friends will squeal on them.

The more potent way to avoid a hangover is to go wrestler-mode with two large serving spoons of ghee (and never mind the calories) at least an hour before you go on a binge. Who knows whether ghee's healthy or not, it's certainly effective when it comes to the alcohol wreaking vengeance on your liver. Ghee-drinkers smile when they say this, but most are actually quite namby-pamby about the actual ingestion and will settle for butter instead. Two hundred grams of Amul should do the trick.

If these, though, sound a little excessive, and if you don't mind modertaing your intake just a little, then your best best is a quick bite so that the first few sips you have aren't on an empty stomach. It will also help if you snack and drink together, though the food should preferably be free of oil (no tikkas, no fried stuff "" funny, considering butter by itself seems to be a hangover-deterrent).

Drinking a glass of plain water every half-hour helps too, as it prevents dehydration, the principal reason that will have you holding your head in agony the next morning. Oh, and if you can actually grab an early bite of dinner before your serious drinking, chances are you won't need to be reading the rest of this column.

But if you're the kind who doesn't set store by home remedies, here's something that should be right up your alley. The Himalaya Drug Company's PartySmart capsules are an ayurvedic promise to keep you hangover-free. One capsule a half hour before your first drink should provide you enough kharjura, kasni, yavatikta and other such herbs to counter the side effects of alcohol by rapid elimination of acetaldehyde, the toxic by-product of alcohol intake. The result, liver protection, no party hangover, headache, nausea or fatigue.

Does it, er, prevent you getting on a pleasant high? Not so. "PartySmart will not prevent intoxication and is not intended to treat or prevent the consequences of excessive alcoholic consumption," it cautions. Therefore, it warns: "Please drink responsibly and never drink and drive."

But if you fail to drink responsibly, and wake up with a nasty one despite all precautions, there's still hope: pop a couple of Disprins for fast relief, or knock back a glass of bubbly Eno salts, grab a cup of strong black coffee "" or simply have another drink. Nothing kills poison like poison.