festive

Damien Broderick (d.broderick@english.unimelb.edu.au)
Fri, 03 Dec 1999 15:16:17 -0800

For extropes hoping to avoid the hangover of the (not)millennium parties, New Scientist recommends:

So, onto N-acetyl-cysteine (NAC), an

            amino acid supplement sold in health
            food stores. This proved to be a winner.

"Fantastic," said one volunteer. "My head
didn't feel fuzzy at all," said another. NAC is thought to work by boosting the body's ability to mop up destructive chemicals called free radicals which build up in the liver as enzymes break down ethanol. Free radicals are usually seen off by glutathione, but after heavy drinking reserves of this enzyme can run low. NAC helps because it is rich in cysteine, a sulphur-rich amino acid that forms the core of glutathione. Fuelled by supplies of cysteine, glutathione remains plentiful and detoxification goes on for longer.
"NAC is like a 'pro-drug' that's converted
into glutathione," says Carl Waltenbaugh, an alcohol researcher from Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. NAC also gives a clue to the success of some age-old hangover cures, such as prairie oysters, omelettes and the English fried breakfast. They all contain eggs-which are also rich in cysteine.

http://www.newscientist.com/alcohol/alcohol.jsp?id=ns221458

BTW, they reckon drinking lots of water before snoozing doesn't work.

Damien Broderick