杏吧原创

I recently picked up a leaflet published by Health Scotland which said the darker the colour of my alcoholic drink, the worse my hangover would be. Whisky, red wine and brandy would lead to a worse morning after than would vodka or white wine, because the darker drinks contained something called congeners. After experimenting, I have to say this seems to be the case. But is it the congeners? If so, what are they and what do they do?

鈥� Most people consume alcoholic drinks for their ethanol content. However many such drinks also contain amounts of other biologically active compounds known as congeners. Congeners include complex organic molecules such as polyphenols, other alcohols such as methanol, and histamine. They are produced along with ethanol during fermentation or the drink鈥檚 ageing process.

Congeners are believed to contribute to the intoxicating effects of a drink, and the subsequent hangover. People who drink pure ethanol-based alcohols such as vodka have been shown to suffer fewer hangover symptoms than those who drink darker beverages such as whisky, brandy and red wine, all of which have a much higher congener content.

鈥淐ongeners are believed to contribute to the intoxicating effects of drinks, and hangovers鈥�

The congener denounced as the main hangover culprit is methanol. Humans metabolise methanol in a similar way to ethanol, but the end-product is different. Ethanol generates acetaldehyde, but when methanol is broken down, a major product is formaldehyde, which is more toxic than acetaldehyde and can cause blindness or death in high concentrations. Ethanol inhibits the metabolism of methanol, which may be why drinking 鈥渢he hair of the dog鈥� can alleviate hangover symptoms.

Studies have found that the severity of different drinks鈥� hangover symptoms decline in this order: brandy, red wine, rum, whisky, white wine, gin, vodka and pure ethanol.

Eric Albie, Hull, East Yorkshire, UK