Is this the hangover cure we’ve been waiting for?

A team of scientists has created a hydrogel that breaks down alcohol in the stomach and intestines. When ingested, it prevents alcohol from entering the blood and stops the compound acetaldehyde from accumulating. A toxic byproduct of alcohol degradation, acetaldehyde is linked to liver cirrhosis and cancer. The hydrogel’s net result is to lessen the harms of alcohol, including the dreaded hangover. So, is this the hangover remedy we’ve been waiting for?

Have your booze and drink it too?

Companies, consumers, and scientists have sought one for years, with limited success. Although many supplements are claimed to prevent or alleviate the headache, nausea, fatigue, and other uncomfortable symptoms that can accompany heavy drinking, none are backed by convincing evidence.

The novel hydrogel appears to be different. Researchers primarily based out of ETH Zürich crafted it from whey protein, a common supplement and food ingredient derived from milk. They also added iron atoms, sugar molecules, and gold nanoparticles to the gel. Together, these additives produce reactions that convert alcohol into innocuous acetic acid within the gastrointestinal tract.

So, the gel doesn’t only remedy a hangover — it also limits alcohol intoxication itself.

Normally, alcohol enters the gastrointestinal tract and then seeps into the bloodstream, where it exerts its intoxicating influence. Alcohol eventually travels to the liver and is broken down to noxious acetaldehyde and then to harmless acetic acid.

In experiments recently detailed in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, the researchers fed mice control liquids or a liquid containing the hydrogel. Twenty minutes later, they dosed the rodents with large amounts of alcohol. Over the next five hours, the scientists monitored the animals’ behavior and collected blood, stool, and tissue samples.

An hour after the alcohol binge, blood alcohol concentrations in the mice fed the hydrogel were 40% lower than in control mice. After five hours, the difference was 56%. The difference in blood alcohol levels was apparent in the animals’ behavior. Mice given the hydrogel easily bested their counterparts at navigating mazes.

The hydrogel also prevented the animals from alcohol-related health problems. In additional tests, mice that chronically binge drank suffered liver damage, weight loss, and gut problems. Mice that binged on booze and consumed the gel were almost entirely spared from these issues. Preventing the buildup of acetaldehyde appeared to be key to preventing organ damage.

Crucially, throughout the tests, mice given the gel showed few to no signs of gastrointestinal distress or any other side effects.

From mice to humans

So when will this exciting hangover remedy be tested in humans?

“We hope and plan to move to clinical studies as soon as possible,” Professor Raffaele Mezzenga, a lead author on the study, told Big Think. “The exact timing is not clear yet and will depend on a number of factors, including ethical clearance and financial support of clinical trials.”

Mezzenga and his co-authors are confident these trials will demonstrate similar effectiveness in humans. They’ve already applied to patent the hydrogel. When commercially available, Mezzenga envisions that the gel will likely be consumed from a tube as an edible paste.

“It could be used for example in a recreational context before starting drinking to diminish the effect of alcohol socially (for example, allowing driving back home), or to reduce the side effects of hangovers,” he said.

But Mezzenga thinks the real benefits of the gel will be in therapeutic settings — perhaps in rehabilitation facilities to help wean patients off chronic alcohol use or in hospitals to help heavily inebriated individuals sober up.

“We believe this can and should also be used for people affected by chronic diseases related to alcohol abuse,” he told Big Think.

Alcohol abuse claims millions of lives each year. This novel gel could greatly reduce its harm.