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We Tried 10 Weird Hangover Cures. Here's What Happened

We tested the weirdest hangover cures to see what works -- and which hangover remedies will make you more miserable
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Hangover Cure No. 7: Blowfish
There's a saying in this country: Why do anything difficult if there's a pill you can swallow instead? OK, that's not an actual saying. Still, if there were a pill that magically cured hangovers, we'd all be drunks. Well, get ready to embrace your inner wino, because there is, in fact, an FDA-approved hangover cure pill that goes by the name of Blowfish.

"Be wary of pills that claim they 'cure' hangovers," Miller warns. "Many of these lack scientific evidence to support their use. Blowfish consists primarily of aspirin and caffeine, and while these ingredients may help lessen the symptoms of a hangover, it is important that they not be used as an excuse to drink more." Now where's the fun in that? No, really, we jest!

While we're not entirely convinced by the hangover pill's vague claims, they do offer a money-back guarantee -- which we like to think of as the sign of a promising product.

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Blowfish: The Sober Truth
A self-described rosé aficionado, Allie decided to give Blowfish a try after a cozy night of sipping all the vino from her Club W shipment. "I'd like to say this was done somewhere cool, like by the fire pit of my friend's beachside cottage or over dinner at a fancy, no-corkage-fee restaurant, but really I was Olivia Pope-ing it at home with popcorn."

Though Allie did get up several times throughout the night to drink water, she skipped the Aleve that usually chases away her hangover by morning. But come 10 a.m. Allie was feeling her hangover's full effects (aka throbbing headache). So she dissolved two Blowfish tablets in water and took a tentative first sip.

"I was skeptical of the taste, but it was actually very mild -- and the bubbles were good for soothing my queasy stomach. It took a few minutes for it to kick in, but the caffeine was powerful. I felt much more awake and less groggy." Coming from a 10-cups-a-day coffee drinker, this sounds like a ringing endorsement.

"Really, I just wanted the painkillers to kick in so my head would stop hurting. Once it did, I felt all right -- probably much better than if I hadn't taken the Blowfish. Was it a magical hangover cure? No. But it did settle my stomach, gave me a boost of energy and eventually diminished my headache."

Grade: 8/10

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Hangover Cure No. 8: Greasy Breakfast
Dragging yourself to the nearest diner after a night of drinking is one of the most popular hangover cures (and one of our personal favorites), but do we really cling to it because it's a legitimate hangover cure?

"While you may crave greasy or fatty foods after you drink alcohol, this can actually backfire," says Lyssie Lakatos and Tammy Lakatos Shames, registered dietitians more commonly known as the Nutrition Twins. "The liver is already working in overdrive to get rid of the alcohol from last night, and you're taxing your liver more by adding fat, salt and carbohydrates from greasy food -- which will ultimately make you feel worse."

Either way, breakfast is still the most important meal of the day and we needed to fill our stomachs with something. So we sent senior editor Rose to belly up to the bar, and then, the next morning, the nearest greasy spoon.

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Greasy Breakfast: The Sober Truth
A seasoned girl-about-town, Rose says she's been a fan of the greasy breakfast hangover remedy since college. So after a night of ordering vodka tonics from the open bar at a magazine launch party and waking up to a hangover that made her feel beyond sluggish, she was all too eager to hit her usual Sunday brunch spot.

While there were plenty of nutritious breakfast options available at Los Feliz's Messhall, Rose traded in her usual oatmeal and fruit for a burger made with eggs, sausage and cheddar cheese, and chased it with a side of house fries. "There's just something comforting about a decadent meal when you're not feeling well," she says.

But even after downing the good-but-greasy food, Rose's hangover symptoms -- nausea and headache, primarily -- returned a couple hours later. "I think a greasy breakfast helps me feel immediately better because I'm putting food in my system at the start of the day," Rose says. "However, a few hours after brunch I went back to feeling just as tired as I did pre-breakfast burger and fries."

Grade: 6/10

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Hangover Cure No. 9: Hair of the Dog
The hair of the dog is my grandpa's favorite hangover cure -- no surprise, since it's one of the oldest hangover cures in the book, and he's old as dirt, too. Sorry, grandpa! For those who aren't familiar with the Norwegian phrase (You really ought to get out more), this hangover cure has nothing to do with hair, and everything to do with drinking the next day when you're hungover to make all the pain go away.

"Although drinking could numb the hangover pain, the truth is that drinking more will only postpone an inevitable hangover," say the Nutrition Twins. "It's simply adding more load for the liver to detoxify when it's already working to combat the toxins left over from last night's alcohol. Adding more toxins to a taxed system won't do the body any good -- or minimize a hangover." But the cure is still around for a reason, right?

I decided to do my grandpa proud and spend the weekend drinking -- all in the name of journalism, of course.

BY KATIE MCCARTHY, JESSICA AMARIS | MAR 17, 2016 | SHARES
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