A hangover is what awaits a person in the morning after a good drinking. Pain in the head, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and general weakness are only half of the symptoms that accompany this unbearable "illness." Most striking is the fact that people themselves bring their body to this critical condition. However, this is not important now. Let’s better talk about what a hangover is? Why does it occur in the morning? And where did the very expression “from a hangover” come from?
Alcohol intoxication
A hangover is another name for a hangover. It appears due to a supersaturation of blood with alcohol, as well as severe dehydration of the body. Indeed, ethyl alcohol in itself is a diuretic. It provokes an accelerated withdrawal of fluid from the human body. It is because of this peculiarity of alcohol from a hangover that people experience extreme thirst and dry mouth.
As for the other symptoms of a hangover, they arise under the influence of harmful toxins contained in any drink. For example, the accumulation of acetaldehydes in the body leads to dizziness, nausea and arrhythmias. But the notorious headache arises from the fact that alcohol increases pressure and dilates blood vessels. Therefore, a hangover is not just feeling unwell in the morning, but a real poisoning by toxins. And this should be remembered. After all, if mild intoxication will go away on its own, then serious intoxication requires medical intervention.
The historical roots of the word: first version
In antiquity in Russia, the barrel was called "bodnya". In those days, it was one of the largest containers used in ordinary life. Vegetables were salted in it, the drying was folded, birch sap was covered and, of course, they kept wine or mead. Therefore, when a person woke up after a binge with a strong hangover, they said to him “got up from a hangover”. This was a humorous allusion to the fact that yesterday he drank a whole barrel of alcohol, not thinking about the consequences.
Second version
If you look at Dahl’s dictionary, a hangover is a large-horned cattle that strives to bodish a person. Based on this, it can be assumed that the synonym for the word "hangover" came from this metaphorical image. After all, a well-drunk person from the side resembles a bull or a buffalo. His head and body are lowered, as if they are drawn to the ground by an invisible force, and his eyes, clouded by alcohol, look as if they saw a red rag in front of them.
It is because of this comparison that people say “with a hangover,” meaning that yesterday a person looked like real cattle. This theory is also confirmed by the fact that in the Russian language there is an expression: "came on the horns", that is, "returned home very drunk."