What is the principle of hangover medicine?

Do you have some friends around you who get drunk and act crazy? These drunk friends sometimes talk nonsense, which is very embarrassing. At this time, you always want to slap them to wake them up, but it doesn't work. Then we need a hangover remedy. Many people want to know the ingredients of hangover remedies, so let us learn about it today. Drunk friends should also take a look.

Principle

There are three pathways for the metabolism of alcohol in the human body: liver, skin and respiratory system, of which about 95% is oxidatively metabolized through the liver's enzyme system. The working principle of alcohol detoxification medicine is to enhance the function of the liver enzyme system to break down alcohol. Here’s how it works:

Alcohol dehydrogenase - acetaldehyde dehydrogenase

Alcohol (ethanol) - acetaldehyde - acetic acid - carbon dioxide and water

CH3CH2OH—C2H4O—C2H4O2

The metabolism of alcohol in the human body mainly depends on two enzymes in the liver's enzyme system: one is alcohol dehydrogenase and the other is acetaldehyde dehydrogenase.

Alcohol dehydrogenase can remove two hydrogen atoms from alcohol molecules, breaking down ethanol into acetaldehyde. Acetaldehyde dehydrogenase can remove two hydrogen atoms from acetaldehyde, converting acetaldehyde into acetic acid, and finally decomposing it into carbon dioxide and water.

If the human body has these two enzymes, it can break down alcohol more quickly and the central nervous system will be less affected by alcohol. Alcohol dehydrogenase exists in the human body, and the amount is basically equal. But there are many people who lack acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. The lack of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase prevents alcohol from being completely broken down into water and carbon dioxide. Instead, acetaldehyde continues to remain in the body, causing symptoms of drunkenness such as nausea, coma and discomfort after drinking. Therefore, people who are not good at drinking and whose alcohol tolerance is below a reasonable standard are those who have insufficient or complete lack of acetaldehyde dehydrogenase. For people who are good at drinking, if they drink too much and too fast, and exceed the decomposition capacity of the two enzymes, they may get drunk.

Whether a person is drunk depends on the concentration of ethanol in the blood. When the ethanol concentration in the blood is between 0.05-0.1%, people begin to feel dizzy and tipsy; when it reaches 0.3%, people will have slurred speech and a staggering gait, which is what we often call being drunk; if it reaches 0.7%, people will die. People vary greatly in their tolerance for ethanol.

Drinking alcohol can easily damage our liver, and friends who drink for a long time are prone to alcoholic liver disease. Do you know why we need to make hangover remedies? It is not only to sober up drunk people, but also to let us understand the harm that alcohol does to the body. Therefore, friends who drink alcohol for a long time must take good care of their bodies. I wish you all good health and happiness.