Heavy alcohol consumption can take a toll on the body, leaving it depleted of essential vitamins and minerals. When a person drinks excessively, their body struggles to absorb these necessary nutrients, which can lead to serious health complications. This is why it’s essential to consider vitamins for alcoholics or heavy drinkers as part of a healthier lifestyle. It aids in converting nutrients into energy, maintaining the nervous system, and producing red blood cells. Alcoholism can severely deplete thiamine in the body, leading to conditions like Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, a severe form of thiamine deficiency. Research suggests certain B vitamins can help treat alcoholic liver disease by alleviating alcohol-induced oxidative stress8.
- Thiamine is the most important vitamin for anyone suffering or previously suffering from alcohol addiction.
- Moreover, it can help improve mental function, often compromised due to excessive alcohol consumption.
- They can also consume other hydrating fluids such as herbal teas, low-fat milk, and water-rich fruits and vegetables.
- Attending events or gatherings where alcohol is present can be difficult, especially when there are limited healthy food options available.
Take These Supplements Before a Night of Drinking
The depressant effects send us to sleep, but we skip the most important part — the restorative REM stages. Alcohol’s “rebound effect” leads to sleep disruption in the second half of the night. In an effort to counteract the downer effect, the brain amps up the release of dynorphin, leaving us anxious and overstimulated. Alcohol use disorder affects about 7.2% of people older than 12 years old, including 6.9% of males and 7.8% of females 8. It has been described that excessive alcohol drinking promotes the pathogenesis of many diseases, such as cancer, liver cirrhosis, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and neuropsychiatric disorders 9,10,11,12. While people naturally produce some vitamins or receive them from healthy food, taking dietary supplements is a great way to deal with nutrient deficiency.
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A type of algae, chlorella is a king among superfoods, containing an array of amino acids, phytonutrients, B-vitamins, and magnesium. A known detoxifier, chlorella has shown promise when it comes to reducing your hangover symptoms. Niacin supplementation has been shown to reduce alcohol consumption in individuals with alcohol use disorder. Niacin has also shown promise in reducing cravings and dependence on alcohol.
Am I An Alcoholic? Why More Women Are Asking The Question
This can be particularly useful for those recovering from alcohol-related liver damage or other physical ailments due to alcohol. Vitamins are nature’s little miracle workers, operating subtly behind the scenes of our daily life to fuel a myriad of metabolic processes that sustain good health. For those who are recovering from alcoholism, understanding the role of vitamins is even more critical. It’s no coincidence that ginger is one of the new science-backed hangover relief methods out there.
Our review updates the existing relationship between vitamins and their mechanism of action during the pathogenesis of ALD. Due to ROS being formed naturally, cells have evolved several enzymatic and nonenzymatic ways to protect them 105,106. In effect, ethanol or its derivatives impairs several of these defensive mechanisms, which could change the redox status, causing the antioxidant cell defenses to be compromised 107.
Whether it’s for health reasons, a work commitment, or just the desire to avoid a hangover, finding ways to expedite alcohol metabolism is what is alcoholism a common quest. Chronic alcohol intake can lead to diminished calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc levels. Alcohol abuse can lead to folic acid deficiency due to poor dietary intake, intestinal malabsorption, decreased hepatic uptake, and increased body excretion.
Thus, the recommendations are made based on several assumptions and considerations that could lead to large variations in the eventual RDA 39,40. In addition, notwithstanding emerging evidence of the remarkable individual differences in the absorption and excretion of vitamins, these values have changed little over the years. It is known that eating requirement values can vary substantially because of several factors, which include genetic polymorphisms, obesity, total energy intake, exercise, and age 41,42,43,44,45,46,47. In addition, fatty acid ethyl esters (FAEE) synthase produces FAEEs via nonoxidative metabolism 22. Ethanol is harmful to the human body and can cause toxicity and death when ingested in excessive amounts.
Previous research has linked alterations in methionine metabolism to ethanol-induced alcoholic liver damage 113,114,115. In animals and humans, chronic ethanol abuse reduces plasma levels of vitamins such as vitamin https://ecosoberhouse.com/ B9 and hepatic levels of SAMe 116 and raises plasma Hcy and hepatic S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) concentrations 110,114,115. Several research articles have linked alcohol-mediated oxidative stress and ethanol-inducible CYP2E1 with oxidative stress and their toxicity, both in in vitro and in vivo models. In effect, new pathophysiological focuses that could be used against ALD have been described using in vitro studies 29,30.
Promising findings for certain B vitamins, vitamin C, magnesium and zinc.
Protein and fat are two macronutrients that are slowly digested by the stomach, which helps to moderate the rate at which alcohol is absorbed into your bloodstream. If you’re the type of person who likes to have a few beverages but still make it to the gym in the morning, then we’ve got the supplements to take before a night of drinking. Sunnyside is the #1 Mindful Drinking app that focuses on moderation approaches to build long term habits around alcohol health. Starting with Sunnyside can result in a better relationship with alcohol and what vitamins help metabolize alcohol they have helped cut over 100 million drinks out for people all over the world. While exercise doesn’t directly speed up the elimination of alcohol from your system, regular physical activity can boost your metabolism, helping your body process alcohol more efficiently over time.
What Are the Most Important Vitamins to Take for Alcohol Use Disorder?
Excessive drinking can cause malabsorption, causing further vitamin deficiencies. Heavy drinkers often lack vitamins B1, B6, B9, and A, eventually leading to nutrient deficiency. These deficits can cause low energy, skin issues, and oxygen insufficiency, among other health consequences. Some evidence suggests that taking magnesium supplements in recovery can help with liver function and depression, and it may lessen cancer risk.
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