A Bottle of Wine is Not a Single Serving (Natural Hangover Cures)

Okay, so alcohol is not an ideal substance. Not one single bit, but when you clean up your diet in a big-picture sort of way, a couple of glasses of wine is not going to set you back. Especially when you're sharing a bottle of wine and some laughs with friends. Drinking a bottle alone on the couch (even when chatting on the phone) is just not a good idea. Trust me. I'm feeling the effects of that bad decision as I type. Nonetheless, sometimes it happens (though a lot less often than it used to). Fortunately for you, that gave me an idea to write about some super healthy, supernatural hangover cures. Yes, you can cure a hangover without Advil, high fructose corn syrup or greasy eggs. Read on to find out how.

1. Water: Alcohol is completely dehydrating. That's why your face looks like a hot mess the morning after a few too many. Slamming a bunch of water is one of the quickest ways to beat the bloat and stop your mouth from feeling like the Mojave.

2. Green Juice: Alcohol is acidic in the body. Green juice is alkaline and hydrating. The green juice will support your eliminative systems in purging your body of the demon drink.

3. Coconut Water: It's nature's Gatorade. You may have seen the packages and cans because they are oh so trendy right now, but if you hack open the white coconuts yourself, you get the real deal (sometimes with little pieces of coconut). It's uber-hydrating and it contains a modest amount of sugar and electrolytes. (And no HFCS). Anyone who knew me in college knows that if they saw me with blue Powerade in the dining hall, I had probably been to the Boat Club (just thinking about that place and sticky muck on the floor gives me the shivers) the night before. Now, if you see me sipping on coconut water from a mason jar, it means I had more than two glasses of wine the night before. (Oh, how times have changed).

4. Healthy Fat: It's no wonder that people tend to gravitate towards fatty food when they are hung over. Ingesting fat slows the release of toxins from the liver because the liver has to process both the fat and the alcohol. (This is why alcohol inhibits fat metabolism, and many weight loss professionals tell their clients not to drink....ever.) Well, when you're hung-over, that bell has already been rung. I liken a dose of healthy fat the day after a party to a homeopathic remedy. In homeopathy, like treats like. So something that needs to be metabolized by the liver will mute the hangover symptoms. My favorite ways to get healthy fat are avocados and raw goat's cheese. With that, I give you the "Perfect Hangover Soup."

Hangover Fruit Soup

1 avocado (healthy fat)
16 oz coconut water (for aforementioned hydration)
A couple of handfuls of spinach for chlorophyll
A couple of cups of blueberries (for sweetness)

Blend in a high speed blender and sip while on the couch.

Suck-it Pinkberry!

I have to admit that I was never a fan of the California phenomenon known as Pinkberry and its progeny. For one thing, cow dairy has never agreed with my digestive system. For another thing, I just didn't like the flavor. That said, I was craving a sweet, frozen treat on Sunday. I had some leftover Coco-gurt which I thought might make a nice sweet treat. I blended it up with a little bit of almond milk, and some vanilla stevia, and came up with my new favorite dessert! Coconuts are full of healthy fat, despite of the bad rap they got during the low-fat diet craze. Coconuts contain a high level of lauric acid, which has anti-viral properties. Combined with the probiotics in the yogurt, my Coconut Fro-yo will actually enhance your health rather than cause bloating, like the dairy version. Enjoy!