Party Recovery IV
Paying the price for being the life of the party? This IV will have you feeling better fast…
Party Recovery IV
Paying the price for being the life of the party? This IV will have you feeling better fast…
You made a mistake, overdid it a bit last night and now you feel miserable. You’re suffering from a condition called “acute alcohol withdrawal”—more popularly known as a hangover. Don’t get sidelined by headaches, nausea, and brain fog. Let us help you feel better fast! We’ll speak softly and start rapidly rehydrating your body with 1 liter of normal saline crystalloid. For that splitting headache, we’ll add Toradol—a long-lasting, non-narcotic, potent pain reliever and anti-inflammatory. Throw in some Zofran for nausea and your symptoms will virtually disappear.
But we take it a step further, we give you back the B vitamins and minerals your body may be missing after last night, and top it off with a generous helping of antioxidants like vitamin C to get you feeling like new again.
The B vitamins are important in converting food to energy. They are also involved in DNA synthesis and replication, mitochondrial phosphorylation, the electron transport chain and ATP production, neurotransmitter production, immune system function, and hemoglobin production.
Another critical metabolic process B vitamins are involved in is called methylation. This is how your body generates carbon groups(C-H3) which are essential for managing just about every operation in every cell in the human body. Here are some of the functions of methylation:
Vitamins such as B12, B6 and B2 are necessary for the proper functioning of the methylation cycle. Without enough, methylation breaks down at the very root and all of the biological processes above can be compromised.
Due to their critical role deficiencies in B vitamins can lead to a VERY wide variety of symptoms including fatigue, anxiety, weight loss, emotional disturbances, muscle weakness, dementia, insomnia, skin eruptions, dermatitis, numbness, paresthesia, anemia, peripheral neuropathy, memory loss, demyelination, multiple sclerosis, paralysis, “brain fog” and cognitive impairment, sore throat, mental confusion, and diarrhea among others.
The earliest symptoms of thiamine deficiency include constipation, appetite suppression, and nausea. Progressive deficiency will lead to mental depression, peripheral neuropathy and fatigue. Chronic thiamine deficiency creates more severe neurological symptoms including ataxia, mental confusion and loss of eye coordination (nystagmus).
This vitamin is a key player in the Krebs cycle and in the methylation cycle as it is a critical cofactor in homocysteine conversion to methionine by the enzyme methionine synthase. In its absence the processing of methylfolate and other steps in folate metabolism stop. This blockage of proper folate (B9) metabolism results in anemia and deficiencies in DNA formation.
Other symptoms of B12 deficiency are demyelination (as in multiple sclerosis), slowed nerve conduction, accumulation of homocysteine and increased heart disease risk, defective cell membranes (branched fatty acids), anemia, fatigue, painful and burning feet, skin abnormalities, retarded growth, dizzy spells, digestive disturbances, vomiting, restlessness, stomach stress, and muscle cramps.
Zinc is necessary for the activity of a number of transcription factors at the DNA level in the synthesis of steroid and thyroid hormones. It also promotes wound healing, regulates immune function, serves as a co-factor for numerous antioxidant enzymes, and is necessary for protein synthesis and the processing of collagen. Zinc inhibits the enzyme aromatase which converts testosterone to estrogen, thus potentially increasing available testosterone.
This essential mineral is commonly used in anti-viral preparations to fight the common cold and flu viruses.
It is rare to be deficient in thiamine, although alcoholics, people with Crohn disease, anorexia, and those undergoing kidney dialysis may be deficient. Symptoms of thiamine deficiency are: headache,nausea,fatigue,irritability,depression and abdominal discomfort
People with thiamine deficiency also have trouble digesting carbohydrates. This allows a substance called pyruvic acid to build up in the bloodstream, causing a loss of mental alertness, difficulty breathing, and heart damage, a disease known as beriberi.
Alcohol induces a state of dehydration in the body by inhibiting the hormone ADH (anti-diuretic hormone) secreted by the pituitary gland. This causes frequent urination, hence all the trips you make to the bathroom while drinking. Aggressive re-hydration is very important in acute alcohol withdrawal recovery. Replacement of other key nutrients like folate (B9), riboflavin (B2), thiamine (B1), cobalamin (B12), zinc and magnesium have also been shown to reduce the symptoms of acute alcohol withdrawal (2),(3).
When you drink, it increases your levels of oxidative stress. This puts your mitochondria—the energy factories in our cells that produce ATP—under duress. In times of heightened oxidative stress your cells are exposed to high levels of oxidants and free radicals, increased hydrogen peroxide production and decreased nitric oxide production—a molecule which is key in keeping our blood vessels open and allowing adequate blood flow to tissues.
To mitigate this, you need to increase your intake of antioxidants such as vitamin C. The research bears this out. A 2014 study in animals (1) showed that melatonin taken before alcohol ingestion helped reduce withdrawal symptoms, likely due to its effects as an antioxidant. Other antioxidants like vitamin C could, therefore, be helpful in managing acute alcohol withdrawal which is precisely why we add them to this IV.
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