Scientists are still searching for remedies that will actually sober people up and fend off hangovers after a night of drinking.
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A get-sober pill? — Science News , November 18, 1972
Researchers at the Tucson Veterans Administration Hospital have been able to reduce intoxication time in rats by administrating harmless chemicals…. Injections of vitamin B3, and vitamin B5 with cystine, were successful… Glyceraldehyde, however, was effective when ingested and sodium acetate (still untested orally) is expected to be even more effective.
Inebriation and the dreaded hangover that follows still don’t have cures — but scientists haven’t stopped searching. A compound in the seeds of Japanese raisin trees appeared to fend off drunkenness in rats and sober them up ( SN: 1/4/12 ), but follow-up research found no effect . Remedies that have worked in rodents have not yet led to treatments for people.
In July, an antihangover supplement became available in the United Kingdom and may soon appear in U.S. stores. The Swedish company that makes this probiotic pill, Myrkle (pronounced “miracle”), claims that it can break down 70 percent of the alcohol in a person’s system in one hour. But the claim is based on a single study conducted by the company.
A version of this article appears in the November 19, 2022 issue of Science News .
A. Scotnicová et al . Does dihydromyricetin impact on alcohol metabolism. Physiological Research . Vol. 69, December 31, 2020, p. S573. doi: 10.33549/physiolres.934606.
D. Xu et al . A hepatocyte-mimicking antidote for alcohol intoxication. Advanced Materials . Vol. 30, May 29, 2018, p. 1707443. doi: 10.1002/adma.201707443.
A. Pfützner et al . Chronic uptake of a probiotic nutritional supplement (AB001) inhibits absorption of ethylalcohol in the intestine tract — results from a randomized double-blind crossover study. Nutrition and Metabolic Insights . Published online June 23, 2022. doi: 10.1177/11786388221108919.
Erin I. Garcia de Jesus is a staff writer at Science News . She holds a Ph.D. in microbiology from the University of Washington and a master’s in science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
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