A lot of us are partial to a tipple of two over the festive season, but it seems Manchester is taking the term ‘Merry’ Christmas to a whole new level.
But one thing’s for sure, we probably won’t be feeling too ‘merry’ the morning after.
A banging headache, waves of nausea and the room spinning around you – we’ve all been there the day after a heavy night of drinking, and it shows with the over 168,000 people searching for “hangover cure” every year in the UK alone, but even though pubs and bars around the country currently have their doors closed due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, sales of alcohol in supermarkets have jumped by 22%, which suggests that more of us than ever are drinking at home.
To see which places are likely to fair the worst this Christmas, health supplement company YourZooki has taken to Google search data to find out how many people in each UK city were searching for the term “hangover cures” per year, and Manchester has come in at number three on the top 10 list.
With over 3120 annual searches, this is equal to 7.88 Mancunians searching for hangover cures per 1000 of the population.
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Here’s the full top 10 list:
Rank
Location
Overall Annual Searches
Searches per 1,000 of city population
1
Newcastle
1,680
8.73
2
Leeds
3,840
8.43
3
Manchester
3,120
7.88
4
Brighton
1,080
7.77
5
Glasgow
3,840
6.49
6
Belfast
1,680
6.11
7
Edinburgh
2,520
5.14
8
Bristol
3,120
5.05
9
Portsmouth
600
4.32
10
Aberdeen
840
4.27
Well then.
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It certainly sounds like we’re set to feel a little worse for wear over the coming weeks.
To help these the citizens of city hangovers though, YourZooki has also enlisted the help of nutritionist Amanda Callenberg, who has provided her top tips to curing a hangover.
Amanda says: “With Christmas being a time for celebrations and indulgence, many of us consume a bit too much alcohol over the festive period, often leading to unpleasant hangovers with symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, dry mouth, nausea and vomiting – which none of us wants to experience over Christmas time.
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“Although alcohol is perfectly safe to enjoy in moderate amounts, it does contain the toxic chemical ethanol – a diuretic which means it helps our body to get rid of fluids – and when we become severely dehydrated, our bodies can’t remove these toxins, so they stay circulating in our bodies.
“It is this dehydration that causes such classic hangover symptoms.
“The best way to avoid a hangover over the Christmas period is to know your limits and limit how much alcohol you drink in one sitting, however, we all know how hard this can be when there is an unlimited supply of prosecco in the kitchen, so other ways you can lessen, and possibly speed up your hangover recovery are:
Eat a balanced meal before you begin drinking: Include fat, protein, and carbohydrates as food in the stomach slows down the absorption of alcohol – this shouldn’t be hard over Christmas.
Hydrate: Alcohol is a diuretic, which means it causes higher levels of urination leading to dehydration, so you should drink plenty of water, before, during and the day after drinking, to keep yourself well hydrated. Aim to drink a glass of water between drinks and have at least one big glass of water before going to sleep.
Replace lost nutrients: Load up on lots of fresh fruit and vegetables the next day to give yourself a vitamin boost and replace the vital electrolytes and nutrients lost due to excess urination. Supplementing with water-soluble vitamins like vitamin C and the B vitamins may also be helpful to make sure you’re replacing the vitamins lost from increased urinary excretion. Being depleted in Vitamin C can cause tiredness and fatigue, a weakened immune system, and difficulties concentrating.
Have a hearty breakfast the following day: Alcohol can inhibit glucose production causing low levels of blood sugar, so make sure you have a good hearty breakfast the next day, or a snack before bed to maintain your blood sugar levels.”
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Horror film due to be released in the UK this week is so scary it’s triggered Apple Watch high heart rate alerts
Daisy Jackson
A film that’s been labelled a ‘horror nightmare’ is set to make its big screen premiere in the UK this week.
The Outwaters has been disturbing audiences across the USA with its ‘found footage’ format, which follows four travellers as they encounter a menacing phenomena while camping in a remote stretch of the Mojave Desert.
Cinema-goers have reported extreme reactions, like having to leave screenings to vomit and also smart watch heart rate monitors showing alerts.
One scary movie fan said it ‘more effectively scares me than anything I’ve ever seen’.
Another labelled it ‘Goddamn terrifying stuff’.
One person said: “I’m still processing #TheOutwaters. I am not sure if it worked for me. The sounding made me so uncomfortably dizzy that I had to leave the theatre to vomit. This never happened to me before. It’s more disturbing than scary if that makes any sense.”
Credit: The Outwaters
Another said: “@TheOutwaters has solidified my opinion that I believe this to have one of the most horrific and traumatizing sequences i’ve ever experienced in a found footage horror film.”
One review reads: “the outwaters is possibly the most upsetting movie i’ve ever watched. and i mean that as a compliment.”
One more said: “The Outwaters may be my new favorite horror movie, highly recommend if you’re into weird f*cked up shit.”
Someone else posted: “Watched The Outwaters the other day and immediately fell in love – it’s the kind of mind-bending indie horror nightmare I’m constantly looking for, just unfiltered awesome creativity firing on all cylinders. Major props to everyone in front of and behind the camera, I loved it!”
And one person described it as a ‘surreal blood soaked mindf*ck through hell’.
Now, The Outwaters Twitter account has confirmed that the film will be streaming in UK cinemas from 7 April.
Screenings may be few and far between to start with, but horror fans, this looks to be one well worth seeking out.
Chris Pine took part in one of the north’s most infamous pub crawls… weirdly
Daisy Jackson
Hollywood star Chris Pine has revealed this week that he spent a year at uni up north – and even took part in one of the country’s most infamous pub crawls.
The Star Trek star was interviewed on Capital FM, where he touched on his memories of studying in Leeds, and on tackling the legendary student drinking challenge that is the Otley Run.
Chris Pine is an American actor best known for his roles as Jamie T. Kirk in Star Trek, Steve Trevor in Wonder Woman and Lord Devereaux in The Princess Diaries 2.
Appearing on Capital FM’s breakfast show this morning with Roman Kemp, Sian Welby and Chris Stark, Pine reminisced on his days studying in Yorkshire.
Kemp kicked off the show with “It’s Capital Breakfast and this morning we are joined by probably the only Hollywood A-lister to attend Leeds university.”
Chris Pine in Don’t Worry Darling. Credit: Warner Bros
“I don’t know, you’ll have to check the alumni book but I’m pretty sure that’s probably accurate” the actor admitted.
Pine explains that he studied in Leeds for one year as an exchange student, when he was just 19 years old.
Chris Stark quickly jumped in to ask Chris about the iconic Leeds student pub crawl, The Otley Run, and whether or not he’d done it as a young undergraduate.
“I don’t remember much of it but yes I have done it.”
“Do you remember what you wore?” Stark responds.
“No I don’t, I remember…nothing.”
Image: Esquire (via Twitter)
He admits that although the crawl consists of 18 bars, he himself has never made it to each one.
He continues to explain that although he now lives in sunny California and has done for most of his life, he in fact lived in the UK for a total of four years between the ages of 29 and 40.
“There’s so much Hollywood work over here but I have yet to go back to Leeds.
“I have all these memories. I lived on Brudenell road and I can see the market across the street and I know the walk to school and the great old cinema on the corner of Brudenell and Hyde Park. I just have these images of school there.”
Image: University of Leeds
So next time you’re wondering down Brudenell Road or catching a flick at Hyde Park Picture House, just know that those hallowed halls were once home to Hollywood royalty.
And who knows, Pine might be hopping on a plane to Leeds Bradford airport after being reminded of such happier times – so make sure to keep an eye out.