HANGOVERS Study bolsters cactus remedy

The fruit has long been known as a folk remedy for many ailments.
SCRIPPS HOWARD
A hangover cure derived from the fruit of the prickly pear cactus, already well-known on many college campuses, eases some symptoms of overindulgence, according to the results of a controlled test published Monday.
"We found hangover-symptom severity to be moderately reduced by an extract of the prickly pear plant," said Dr. Jeff Wiese, a researcher at Tulane University in New Orleans who led the study, which was published in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
The fruit has long been regarded as a folk remedy for many ailments, including problems with nerves, poor circulation and digestion. In recent years, French scientists have identified proteins with anti-inflammatory properties in the skin of the fruit, and Italian researchers have found that the pears, called "tunas," are rich in antioxidants.
Set up study
Wiese and his colleagues, working with support from a leading manufacturer of prickly pear extract as well as from the Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, set up a controlled trial to see just how well the herb did at salving the aftermath of a hard night's drinking.
At least one reason that a hangover makes you feel miserable is inflammation -- or swelling -- of blood vessels in the brain, the gut and elsewhere. The culprit is the liver, which is damaged by alcohol. When traumatized, the liver releases a substance called C-reactive protein, which causes inflammation.
It appears that the cactus extract actually helps to clear the body of the excess inflammatory proteins, the researchers said.
Dr. Marc Siegel, an associate professor of medicine at New York University who follows herbal remedies but was not involved in the new study, said that prickly pear cactus is known to have medicinal value in settling the stomach and bowels. And "since many hangover symptoms are bowel- or stomach-related, it is not surprising that this herb has a positive effect," he said.
A caution
But he also cautioned that the extract is a diuretic, and because those who have been drinking heavily tend to end up dehydrated, it should be used carefully.
Wiese and his team tested the product on 55 young adult volunteers aged 21 to 35. Each was randomly assigned to take either the extract or an inactive pill five hours before they consumed any alcohol. About four hours before the subjects started drinking, they were given a fast-food meal of cheeseburger, fries and a soft drink.
Then, they got a choice of vodka, gin, rum, bourbon, scotch or tequila and had to stick to one for the evening's four-hour pouring. During that time, each person consumed up to 1.75 grams of alcohol per kilogram of body weight, an amount shown to induce hangovers in other studies.
One hour after the drinking stopped, blood-alcohol levels were measured, and the subjects were driven home. The next morning, the volunteers returned to the lab to have vital signs measured and blood and urine samples taken.
Hangover severity and overall well-being were scored on a scale of zero to six, with six being worst off. Two weeks later, the study was repeated with the same volunteers, except that those taking the supplement and placebo were flipped.
Wiese and his team found that three of nine common symptoms of hangover -- nausea, dry mouth and loss of appetite -- were significantly reduced in those who had taken the extract. Their average score the morning after was 2.75, compared with 3.10 for the volunteers that took the placebo.