The Champion's Corner

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Almost everyone out there has heard it: beer before liquor, never been sicker, liquor before beer, never fear (or, &quot;you&#39;re in the clear,&quot; depending on which version you&#39;ve heard). But how true is that? When you wake up after a long night and your head is pounding, your mouth feels like it&#39;s full of cotton and your stomach could use (but really doesn&#39;t want) a pile of greasy breakfast food, is it because of the order you drank your booze in the night before? Is there something else behind it? 

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Almost everyone out there has heard it: beer before liquor, never been sicker, liquor before beer, never fear (or, &quot;you&#39;re in the clear,&quot; depending on which version you&#39;ve heard). But how true is that? When you wake up after a long night and your head is pounding, your mouth feels like it&#39;s full of cotton and your stomach could use (but really doesn&#39;t want) a pile of greasy breakfast food, is it because of the order you drank your booze in the night before? Is there something else behind it? 

Does it really make a difference whether you start with beer, wine, liquor or spirits? New studies claim that this old motto might just be a myth after all. Let&#39;s check out whether beer before liquor really does make you sicker,&nbsp;or whether you might just want to think about what you&rsquo;re drinking in general before downing your next shot. 

Where Did This Come From?

The truth is, nobody knows where the old adage came from or how old it is. It seems like it&#39;s been around forever &mdash; certainly for generations, in any case. It&#39;s very likely that it came about as an old wives&#39; tale (or old partiers&#39; tale, more accurately) that was just related to people&#39;s individual experiences. Someone noticed that if they had a beer or two and then switched to hard liquor, they tended to get way sicker the next day than if they just stuck with the brew all night. Of course, there are also multiple explanations for why this may be, so regardless of where the adage began, it&#39;s time to explore the science behind it so you can party informed! 

Quality Over Quantity?

The first thing we need to get out of the way is that how much you drink is going to have a much greater effect on you than the combination of booze you take in. It shouldn&#39;t come as a shock to anyone that drinking too much isn&#39;t a good idea, but many of us are willing to live with the consequences (at least until the next morning). But what could make for an even worse time for you is precisely what you&#39;re drinking, more so than the combination of different types of alcohol.

Consider sparkling wines and beer, for example. What do they have in common? They&#39;re carbonated! Carbonation tends to bubble around in your stomach, irritating the stomach lining, and that allows your body to absorb alcohol at a faster rate. For this reason, when you start with a carbonated beverage (potentially even nonalcoholic soda), you might get drunk faster after you add something with more horsepower on the back end.

In truth, however, this is probably of very little consequence &mdash; the rate at which the alcohol absorption will increase is minuscule. Taking in your alcohol with food, on the other hand, can slow down how fast your body absorbs alcohol, meaning you won&#39;t get as drunk as fast and, more importantly, you&#39;re likely to feel less sick in the morning.

People Who Drink Liquor &hellip; Stop Drinking Beer

Another, and even more likely, reason why people get sicker when they switch over to liquor after starting with a few beers is that people who drink liquor tend not to drink any more beer! Naturally, since they switched over from beer, they tend to assume that it must have been the switch from beer to whiskey, vodka, gin, rum, or wine that caused it. The truth, however, is less complex. The fact is, liquor tends to have a lot more alcohol in it than beer (even high ABV craft beers), and the more alcohol you consume, the sicker you&#39;re going to be when the chickens come home to roost.

It&#39;s Science!

There&#39;s even been a scientific study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition that backs up the idea that what order you intake has little to no effect on the hangover the morning after. The study looked at 90 participants who were separated into three groups, and then they all started drinking. The alcohol consumed was identical: a 5% lager followed by a 2015 white wine at 11.1%. The first group drank beer first, then wine. The second group drank wine first, then beer. Members of the third group could choose between the two but drank only beer or only wine. 

One week after the initial round, everyone came back and had to repeat the test, but in the opposite order, or to switch beverages in the case of group three. The Acute Hangover Scale, or AHS, was used to rate the severity of the aftermath.

Yes, there is an actual Acute Hangover Scale.

The end of the study demonstrated that the order of the drinks, or whether one drank just one kind, made no difference. The pain and discomfort of the aftermath were the same either way. One interesting result, however, was that women tended to have worse hangovers overall than the men did. Of course, this was a very small-scale study, but it does tend to support the idea that the &quot;beer before liquor&quot; adage is a myth.

So, What Contributes to a Hangover?

There&#39;s the million-dollar question: if it&#39;s not the order, is there anything besides the amount of alcohol you drink that makes your hangover better or worse? Experts agree that yes, there are a few factors that can contribute to your hangover beyond the amount of alcohol you drink. First, as we mentioned earlier, is whether or not you ate before drinking. Laying down a base can slow down how fast your body absorbs alcohol, which means you don&#39;t get drunk as fast, and consequently, you probably won&#39;t have as bad a hangover.

Next, how frequently do you drink? If you&#39;re a daily or even weekly drinker and you tend to party hard, your blood alcohol is likely to get concentrated and spike faster than those who drink only occasionally. In short, heavy drinkers tend to get drunker faster (even if they might not feel it) and will also suffer worse hangovers. Smokers, too, tend to have more frequent and more powerful hangovers than those who don&#39;t smoke.

Next, there&#39;s the science-y stuff. Alcoholic beverages have compounds in them called congeners. These compounds are present in all alcohol, but certain types of beverages may have more than others. If your beverage has more congeners, your hangover might be worse. To avoid congeners, watch out for dark liquors like brandy, bourbon dark beer and the like. Last but not least, your genetics can have an effect on how you metabolize alcohol. In that case, there&#39;s not much you can do about it except drink less!

Beer Before Liquor Before Beer: It Doesn&#39;t Matter!

There you have it. It doesn&#39;t matter whether you start with liquor or beer. If you want to be in the clear, the best bet is to avoid getting really drunk. It&#39;s the amount of alcohol you drink, whether you ate, how often you drink, if you&#39;re a smoker and your genetics that influence it all in the end. Now you have something you can use to sound smart the next time one of the bros claims, &quot;Liquor before beer; I&#39;m in the clear!&quot;

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Does it really make a difference whether you start with beer, wine, liquor or spirits? New studies claim that this old motto might just be a myth after all. Let&#39;s check out whether beer before liquor really does make you sicker, or whether you might just want to think about what you&rsquo;re drinking in general before downing your next shot.

Does Beer Before Liquor Really Make You Sicker?

The definition of a beach escape can equal relaxation, but that&#39;s not everybody&rsquo;s goal. According to some, beach towns are the best place to get buzzed and can only mean one thing: raging fun.

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To continue reading this article, please <a href="/login">log in</a> or <a href="/register">sign up for a free account</a>!

The definition of a beach escape can equal relaxation, but that&#39;s not everybody&rsquo;s goal. According to some, beach towns are the best place to get buzzed and can only mean one thing: raging fun. For the epic individual who prefers partying in paradise, drinking all day, letting loose, and getting wild, here are the best beach towns for your next rager. Get the guys together, pack some of your favorite Kayak, and let&#39;s roll.

<h3>Key West, Florida</h3>

Key West has more bars in a small radius than any other place in the United States. Did you get that? There are A LOT of bars in very close proximity. Add nice weather, minimal clothing, and sunshine to get a total bangin&#39; party. Hells yeah. Key West also holds a ten-day, adults-only, raging festival called <a href="https://www.fantasyfest.com/">Fantasy Fest</a>. Literally, just go. It&#39;s promised to be the wildest extravaganza around.

<h3>Panama City, Florida</h3>

Panama City, Florida, is a party-hard hotspot. The destination even claims title to the USA&#39;s largest nightclub. If large nightclubs aren&#39;t your thing, Panama City boasts over eight miles of sparkling beaches, live music venues, legendary karaoke nights, and lively bars. For the biggest daytime beach party in the USA, hit up <a href="https://beachbashmusicfest.com/">&#39;Summester Break,&#39;</a> a three-day Panama City Beach hosted music festival with some of the hottest artists in the industry.

<h3>Belmar, New Jersey</h3>

For anyone looking for a rager, the beachside of burrough of Belmar checks the boxes. Apparently, people claim that &quot;There ain&#39;t no party like a Belmar party,&quot; and with the largest party boat fleet in the state of New Jersey, these people might be right. In addition to boozing on boats, Belmar also has a boardwalk (rebuilt in the wake of Hurricane Sandy), fun bars, and microbreweries, which add to the partying, beach town vibes. Neighboring town Sea Girt is also worth a mention.

<h3>South Padre Island, Texas</h3>

A rager is almost guaranteed when visiting South Padre Island. Well-known to the average spring breaker, South Padre Island is anything but average. Think bikini contents, beach clubs, dancing, and drinking on the sand. The Texas party town also plays host to what Rolling Stone magazine called &#39;the largest beach party in the world.&quot; (But TBH, this seems a bit of a stretch if you&#39;re counting Brazil&#39;s party pace. But, everything is always bigger in Texas...so nvm). Whether you want EDM jams or a crafty cocktail, there is a vibe to fit your party mood in South Padre Island.

<h3>Hermosa Beach, California</h3>

Many claim San Diego&#39;s Ocean Beach to be the place for a raging party, but truthfully, it&#39;s slightly overrated. Hermosa Beach, on the other hand, is where the real partying happens. Located in Los Angeles County, Hermosa Beach is straight-up fun. Fourth of July is complete chaos; a crowded, lively, boozy, and beautiful party scene. Red, white, and blue bikinis and beach attire abound. The pier is packed with partiers and music pumps from the balconies of multi-million dollar beachfront homes. Sounds pretentious, but it&#39;s not&mdash;just a real good time. Hermosa Beach also hosts volleyball tournaments, free beach concerts, and movies on the beach in the Summer months. The beach town includes a decent bar scene that is wild or classy chill, depending on your party style.

Don&#39;t want to stay local? Take your rager abroad, and party it up in one of these epic international beach towns. Don&#39;t blame us if you recreate your own version of Hangover 2...

<h3>San Juan, Puerto Rico</h3>

House music pumping, dive bars karaoke-ing, cheap beer pouring&mdash; Puerto Rico knows how to start a party and keep it going. San Juan&#39;s party scene is hip and hot with tropical vibes that mix with city shine. The fun-loving partier has the best options for gambling, dancing, and late-night clubbing. Nurse the mild hangover with a poolside Pina Colada and get ready for another night in paradise...

<h3>Punta Cana, Dominican Republic</h3>

Punta Cana is an all-inclusive partiers paradise with sunshine, sea, sand, and delicious sips (bottomless rum punch and slushy daiquiris&mdash; yes, please!) Only a short flight from Atlanta, Houston, or Miami, Punta Cana has it all, including fun booze-infused catamaran tours, beautiful scenery, dance clubs, and swim-up bars. Did we mention the unlimited alcohol? Oh yes. That&rsquo;s worth repeating.

<h3>Cancun, Mexico</h3>

The Cancun party scene is iconic, a destination most people drink at once in their lives (at the very least). Cancun has high-rise hotels located within steps of pristine beaches, poolside bars, and hot night clubs for dancing, drinking, and indulgence. The clubs are famous, the clothes sparse, and the raging revelry available day in and day out.

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The definition of a beach escape can equal relaxation, but that&#39;s not everybody&rsquo;s goal. According to some, beach towns are the best place to get buzzed and can only mean one thing: raging fun. For the epic individual who prefers partying in paradise, drinking all day, letting loose, and getting wild, here are the best beach towns for your next rager. Get the guys together, pack some of your favorite Kayak, and let&#39;s roll.

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