It has long been an urban legend that you can prevent hangovers with multi-vitamins. The theory goes that heavy drinking flushes out water-soluble vitamins and taking one (or as I was told two) multi-vitamins before going to sleep replenished them.
Aside from the reality of whether it works or not, I’m wondering about the theory. Does drinking hasten the flushing of vitamins? I know that having the runs will hasten the flushing of some things (Potassium for instance.)
What types of things will flush vitamins from the system?
Some vitamins are water soluble (vitamin C, is one, I believe), so the diuretic effect of alcohol could flush them out like it does potassium.
Vitamin B (I forget which one, but often all the Bs are lumped into one pill) helps the liver process the aldehydes that form from the metabolism of alcohol. The aldehydes are what make you feel shitty.
And most vitamins are water soluble, the exceptions being A, E, and K (and perhaps D- this is off the top of my head).
eta: or something like that.
also, homebrew, having yeast laden with vitamin B, is great for hangovers