Adam’s Journal
From the too-good-to-be-true category comes the following headline I recently saw: The People Who Never Get Hangovers. Do such people really exist? If so, how do I join this group?
Dr. Scofield Prescribes
I saw the same headline. And I had the same reactions. So, I did a little digging.
In answer to your first question, it appears that yes, such hangover-resistant humans walk among us. (Sadly, I am not one, and, apparently, neither are you.)
In several different studies, researchers found that a significant number of people report being “hangover resistant.” The definition varies a bit, but it generally means rarely (not in the past __ years) or never having experienced those morning-after-a-big-night-of-drinking symptoms many of us know too well: nausea, dizziness, fatigue, headache, dry mouth and difficulty concentrating.
Before I go deeper, I would note that all of the data in this field are based on participants’ self-reporting of their conditions. As a result, the findings are necessarily subjective; one person’s inability to focus might be another’s typical Friday morning.
That said, studies regularly determined that about 1 in 4 people didn’t report feeling hungover after significant drinking. Although the scientists didn’t pinpoint a single cause, they did identify some factors that seem to influence hangover resistance.
Not surprisingly, genetics is likely one of them. For example, people of East Asian descent have reported more frequent bouts of serious hangovers, which may be a product of low levels of an enzyme that helps process alcohol.
More surprisingly, researchers found that people with high levels of stress and anxiety are more prone to hangovers. However, depression didn’t seem to have the same effect.
Some scientists theorize that the immune system may play a role in how the body responds to alcohol. Studies have shown that alcohol stimulates inflammation, and researchers have hypothesized that hangover-resistant drinkers have better-functioning immune systems. In one analysis of self-reported immune function among Dutch students, those who experienced hangovers reported more issues in the previous year with their immune systems – sore throat, fever, respiratory illnesses and the like – than those who said they were hangover resistant.
In examinations of participants’ alcohol use, they have identified a trend: The more alcohol participants consumed, the lower the reported levels of hangover resistance. In other words, among those who get really intoxicated, the phenomenon shrinks significantly.
As scientists continue to tease apart the data, some now argue that the true number of drinkers who’ve never experienced a hangover in their lifetime is more like 5%. Still, all seem to agree that the phenomenon is real.
But before you – or I – lament that we’re not among this seemingly lucky group, remember that there’s always another side of the coin when it comes to biology. While the topic doesn’t (yet) seem to have been studied, it seems likely that hangover resistance would lead to higher rates of alcohol use. And the more we drink, the worse it is for our health.
In other words, consider yourself lucky to be hangover prone!
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Dr. Hal Scofield is a physician-scientist at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, and he also serves as Associate Chief of Staff for Research at the Oklahoma City VA Medical Center. Adam Cohen is OMRF’s senior vice president and general counsel. Send your health questions to contact@omrf.org.
