The 5 best – and slightly odd – hangover cures (according to Reddit)

From ‘banana bags’ to pickle juice to eating snow

Hangover cures: from pickle juice to IV drips to snow (Kristina/flickr)

It was 'Mad Friday' last night – the final Friday before Christmas, when many begin their break from work for the holidays and decide to indulge in a celebratory libation, making it one of the busiest nights for pubs and bars in the calendar.

So today, it's very likely there are a few sore heads out there.

Thankfully, Reddit users have been posting their favourite hangover cures online, and while some make plenty of sense, others seem rather unorthodox.

Despite scientists' claims that there is no such thing as a hangover cure, almost 1,800 people who commented on the thread believe there are ways to diminish a hangover, delay it or at the very least, prepare for it.

Here are five of the best:

IV drips

Replenishing electrolytes and vitamins through an IV drip was the number one most-voted-for hangover cure.

Since dehydration is the biggest cause of a hangover, restoring your body's natural balance of electrolytes and vitamins directly through the blood stream seems to be the quickest route to feeling normal again.

Reddit user InspireHD wrote: “There is a thing called a Banana Bag. It’s basically a yellow solution in an IV bag that people are given when they have a high dependency on alcohol.

"I once saw a guy who was completely incoherent, basically in and out of consciousness, BAC around .38 per cent, given the solution through an IV and within about 10 minutes he was awake, alert, and functional. It wasn’t a cure but it sure did work!”

A 'Banana Bag', also known as a rally pack, contains IV fluids with vitamins and minerals that are used to replenish nutritional deficiencies or correct chemical imbalances in the body, particularly magnesium deficiencies, which can be caused by excessive consumption of alcohol.

Many users also suggest making friends with EMTs, for easy access to IV drips.

Pickle juice

According to several Reddit users, pickle juice is one of the best hangover cures to ever grace a refridgerator.

“My Polish uncle swears by drinking a jar of pickle juice as the best cure for a hangover," wrote user dyaknowhatimean. According to Oprah Winfrey's favourite doctor, Dr Mehmet Oz, pickle juice contain salts that "help replenish your electrolytes and put your body back in balance".

Pedialyte

Some users swear by Pedialyte, a hydration formula intended for children.

“Pedialyte is the drink they give kids when they’re sick and need to replenish electrolytes. A hangover is essentially an extreme state of dehydration… Gatorade is okay for this purpose but it’s more sugar water than anything else, Pedialyte is actually recommended by doctors to perform this function when you’re sick," wrote user sheridork.

Pedialyte appears to know quite well how the product is used as a hangover cure, launching a campaign in May this year targeting hungover adults.

One Reddit user confirms its use: “Yep, I lived with an alcoholic bartender and she bought Pedialyte in bulk every week."

Irn-Bru

Beloved Scottish soft drink Irn-Bru got a shout out on the thread by user ZamrosX: “F****N IRN BRU!”

As a carbonated drink packed with iron, Irn-Bru is a popular hangover cure in Scotland. One user mused: “If the Scots thinks it helps the morning after, they’re probably on to something.”

Snow

One commenter swore they had discovered the hangover cure to beat all hangover cures - snow.

“If available, shove some snow in your mouth. I was so hungover every time I ate I threw it up. On the way home from the cabin we were at we had to stop so I could throw up in the blizzard.

I shoved snow in my mouth, holy shit I was good as new. The water hydrated me, the cold cleared my sinuses and helped with the nausea. 10/10 would frantically eat snow to heal my body," user Ice_C wrote.

Ice lollies were widely agreed upon as a similar cure, as the slow intake of water and sugar to rehydrate the body appears to help with nausea.