Your Essential Festive Survival Kit

Overindulging in too much food and drink is par the course at this time of year but you can try and offset the damage by having a ready-made rescue pack at the ready. Here’s what to include…

Milk thistle extract

It’s the active ingredient, silymarin, in milk thistle that makes it such a popular hangover remedy, and it’s one of a number of flavonoids which are thought to help repair liver cells that have been damaged by alcohol and other toxins. It does this by targeting free radicals which are produced when your liver metabolises toxic substances.

Ginger

To ward off the nausea that you often get with a particularly nasty hangover make sure you stock up on plenty of ginger. Known for its anti-viral and anti-inflammatory properties, ginger helps improve digestion and support the release of blood-pressure-regulating hormones to calm your body and reduce nausea.

Vitamin B12

As well as headaches and nausea, partying too hard can cause our energy levels to flag. To combat that, make sure you have a good vitamin B12 supplement to hand, a crucial vitamin which most of us have sub-optimal levels of anyway. Because good gut health is imperative for absorption, try taking your B12 in the form of a lozenge that you can suck on. This enables you to bypass a potentially compromised gut and absorb the B12 via the mucus membranes in the mouth instead.

N-acetylcysteine (NAC)

A powerful free-radical scavenging antioxidant that’s worth knowing about when it comes to helping reduce the severity of a hangover, NAC is useful because it increases your body’s ability to product glutathione, an antioxidant which helps reduce the toxicity caused by alcohol. Its potent anti-inflammatory properties are also key when it comes to limiting the inflammatory intestinal damage caused by too much fatty food and alcohol. Although NAC can be found in supplement form, Workshop’s Multi Vitamin Formula contains NAC in its blend. Mixed with water, it’s a great way to ensure you stay on top of your intake.