How to Prepare for a Night Out Drinking

HOW DOES ALCOHOL AFFECT THE BODY?

Before we get into how you can prepare your body for a night of drinking, it's essential to go over how alcohol affects the body first. That way, you can do everything possible to mitigate its adverse effects.

Alcohol is absorbed into your bloodstream within 90 seconds of consuming an alcoholic drink. The higher the strength of the alcohol, the faster it's absorbed. Drinking on an empty stomach also massively increases how fast alcohol is absorbed into your bloodstream.

Once alcohol is in circulation, your kidneys break it down and remove it from your bloodstream. After all, alcohol is a toxin, so your body tries to break it down and use it as an energy source before clearing it.

Your liver can only do this at a specific rate. This means the enzymes that break down alcohol become used or "saturated" relatively quickly. For most people, the rate of alcohol metabolism is around one drink per hour. Factors such as your weight, height, gender, age, and genetics are involved in determining your metabolism. 

Drinking faster than this rate makes your blood alcohol levels rise higher and higher, which is when you start to feel tipsy or drunk. 

Aside from the pleasurable effect, alcohol also starts to cause problems in a few different ways:

DEHYDRATION

You probably already know that drinking too much alcohol causes dehydration. It's because alcohol is a "diuretic," which means it makes you pee out more water. It does this by blocking a hormone called vasopressin from being released by your pituitary gland. As a result, your kidneys end up flushing out water.

INFLAMMATION

When alcohol is metabolized in your liver, toxic by-products such as acetaldehyde are formed. In normal circumstances, your liver tries to clear acetaldehyde before it causes too much damage. But the enzyme that breaks down acetaldehyde also runs at total capacity when drinking over your limits. That means you get a build-up of acetaldehyde, which then reacts with your cells, causing inflammation.

The second line of defense against by-products like acetaldehyde is antioxidants. Antioxidants help out by neutralizing harmful compounds.

SLEEP DISTURBANCE

A less well-known cause of hangovers is sleep disturbance. Alcohol prevents your brain from reaching the REM stage of sleep, which is crucial for waking up fully rested. In addition to this, a long night of drinking is usually associated with a late night. This leaves you with poor-quality sleep for a shorter number of hours, a less-than-ideal combination. 

In summary, as you can see, there are quite a few things to consider when preparing for a night of drinking. To prepare successfully, you'll need to do everything you can to reduce the damaging impact of alcohol mentioned above.

HOW TO PREPARE FOR A NIGHT OF DRINKING

So, now on to the all-important question. How do I prepare for a night of drinking?

Before we start this section, we need to emphasize that hangovers and any other adverse effects of alcohol can be prevented by drinking less. Without trying to point out the obvious, drinking less alcohol and drinking at a slower pace is all that's required.

With that out the way, here are some other things you can do to prepare for a night of drinking.

PLAN AHEAD

Before you even start drinking, make a plan for the night. This should include setting limits for yourself on how much you'll drink, deciding how you'll get home safely, and informing a trusted friend about your plans. Having these decisions made ahead of time will help you avoid poor judgment caused by alcohol later on.

INVEST IN REHYDRATION MIXES

Drink plenty of water to combat dehydration. One of the best things you can do is drink a glass of water between each alcoholic drink. Ensure you hydrate before you even start drinking and continue to do so throughout your night. Drinking water before, during, and after drinking alcohol will help you maintain hydration, support your liver and kidney function, and potentially reduce the severity of your hangover symptoms the following day.

Consider investing in a rehydration mix to support rapid hydration. These contain a specific sodium, potassium, and sugar ratio, which hydrates more efficiently than water alone. 

These are typically used for diarrheal illnesses or endurance sports, but they can be used for any cause of dehydration. 

So, the best way to prepare for a night of drinking is to drink a glass of water between each drink and consider taking a rehydration mix after your last drink.

EAT BEFORE GOING OUT

All our moms tell us to eat something before going out. And to be fair to our moms, this is an essential point when it comes to preparing for a night of drinking.

Alcohol is absorbed much faster into your bloodstream if you have an empty stomach. Rapid rises in blood alcohol concentration wreak havoc on your insides.

Thankfully, eating before drinking alcohol massively reduces how fast alcohol is absorbed. In turn, this will steady the rate of alcohol absorption.

You may have heard that eating certain foods or drinking milk before alcohol can help "line your stomach." Studies have shown that any meal rich in carbs, protein, and fat will work. (1)

PACE YOUR DRINKING

It's important to pace your drinking throughout the night. By spacing out your drinks, you allow your body more time to metabolize the alcohol, which helps prevent your blood alcohol concentration from rising too quickly. This reduces the likelihood of you becoming overly intoxicated and helps keep a hangover at bay.

GET REST BEFORE AND AFTER

Sleeping adequately before you go out can be as important as resting afterward. A good night's sleep before drinking will help counteract the disruptive effects alcohol has on your sleep patterns. After drinking, make sure to prioritize getting enough rest to help your body recover.

TAKE IN VITAMINS AND ANTIOXIDANTS

Your body gets antioxidants in two ways: directly from your food or through your liver's natural production.

Several antioxidant vitamins, minerals, and herbal extracts can support your body's natural antioxidant defenses. 

Some have been explicitly researched about alcohol consumption, such as prickly pear extract, red ginseng, and specific B vitamins. (2) 

The studies are small, and much more research must be done before their efficacy is proven. 

WEAR AN EYE MASK

Your eyes and brain are designed to respond to sunlight. Even a tiny amount of light through a window signals your brain to wake up.

If you've been out all night drinking, chances are you're sleeping much later than usual. And a lie-in is almost definitely needed.

That's why an eye mask is a must-have. Wear one before bed so that even if you've slept late, the mask will block out any light from your windows, allowing your mind to rest. It's a simple but very effective way of preparing for a night of drinking.

BRUSH YOUR TEETH

Dental hygiene is often overlooked on a night out. Getting into bed without brushing your teeth is terrible for your enamel. Brush your teeth with a high-quality toothpaste that contains fluoride.

CONSIDER TAKING ANTI-INFLAMMATORIES

Painkillers such as Ibuprofen are anti-inflammatory. Unlike Tylenol, they work by blocking inflammatory messengers in your body. Taking painkillers like Ibuprofen may help slow down inflammation.

That said, these medications should be taken with caution. Before taking them, read the information leaflets and speak to your doctor if you have any medical conditions.

EXERCISE BEFORE GOING OUT

Exercise before going out is often considered an excellent way to prepare for a night of drinking, but that's only sometimes the case.

After exercise, your muscles need a good dose of protein and carbohydrates (amongst other things) for recovery. Drinking alcohol soon after exercise without having a proper meal and rest period could be better. (3)

That said, if you exercise in the morning and then plan to go out in the evening, this shouldn't be a problem. It's mainly an issue if you exercise within a few hours of going out.

USE THE BUDDY SYSTEM

Going out with trusted friends and staying together throughout the night enhances your safety. Make sure everyone in your group knows how they're getting home and keeps an eye on each other. This way, you can help prevent one person from making poor decisions or getting into unsafe situations.

In summary, these are the best things you can do to prepare for a night of drinking. Set them aside next to your bed before you go out so you're well prepared to take action as soon as you get home. We've said it before, but we'll mention it again: Drinking less alcohol is always the best option!

THINGS TO AVOID

So, now that we've reviewed everything you can do to prepare for a night of drinking, there are some things you may also want to avoid.

This way, you'll have the best chance of feeling okay the next day.

CAFFEINATED MIXERS

Many soft drinks used as mixers also contain a lot of caffeine, so you should avoid them if you can.

Caffeine, like alcohol, is a diuretic, which means it can exacerbate dehydration. Its half-life is 6 hours.

That means the amount of caffeine in your system halves every six hours. So, if you drink it late at night, you'll still have a high amount of caffeine flowing through your veins in the early morning hours. 

Caffeine in your system will disrupt your sleep even more than alcohol has already disturbed it, so the two go badly together.

SHOTS

Doing shots is never a good idea if you plan to wake up feeling okay the next day. It's a guaranteed way of waking up with a hangover.\

Slow and steady is the best approach to preparing for a night of drinking. Shots of liquor cause significant spikes in your blood alcohol concentration, which is a problem for hangovers.

DARK-COLORED DRINKS

One of the simplest ways of preparing for a night of drinking is to consider picking lighter-colored drinks. That's because darker-colored beverages contain high amounts of congeners, which are known to make hangovers worse.

Congeners are the name given to compounds in liquor that give them their distinctive taste and aroma. That's why darker-colored drinks like red wine and whiskey taste the way they do.

Unfortunately, congeners make hangovers much worse, and you can read more about this in our article about congeners and hangovers.

OTHER SUBSTANCES

Avoid combining alcohol with drugs or certain medications. Mixing substances can intensify the effects of alcohol, leading to dangerous and unpredictable situations. Always check with your doctor or pharmacist if you're unsure about potential interactions.

CONSIDER YOUR NEXT DAY'S COMMITMENTS

When planning your night out, think about your commitments the following day. If you have responsibilities you can't miss, make sure you drink in a way that will be okay with them. This might mean stopping drinking earlier, consuming less alcohol, or simply planning a lighter night to ensure you're still functional the next day.

PREPARING FOR A NIGHT OF DRINKING – TAKEAWAY POINTS

That brings us to the end of our look at how you can prepare for a night of drinking.

Your landing on this article means you're doing the right thing to support recovery as best you can.

Ultimately, the best preparation for a night of drinking is to drink less alcohol. And it should come first on the list before any of the tips mentioned above.