Six Of The World’s Most Bizarre Hangover Cures

Published January 20, 2013
Updated November 7, 2023

Because hangover cures don't always have to involve eggs or lining your armpits with lemon juice — six of the world's weirdest hangover cures.

Weird Hangover Cures

Source: Wikipedia

Hangover Cures: Pickled Herring

Pickled Herring

Move over bacon and eggs, it’s time for KaterFrühstück, Germany’s famous pickled or marinated herring. Sounds pleasant enough for the Saturday night sinner to sink his or her teeth into on Sunday morn, save for the fact that the herring fillet is raw and wrapped around chunks of onion and gherkin.

Deep Fried Canaries

Popular in Ancient Rome, hangovers were often cured with the delicacy of deep-fried canaries seasoned with salt and pepper. Apparently they were a great cure for headaches in particular.

Voodoo

Hangover Cures Voodoo

Source: Eugene Cho

In Haiti, voodoo is used to cure the evils of alcohol. The Haitians insert 13 pins into the cork of the bottle that caused the hangover, ostensibly expelling the aches and nausea associated with excessive alcohol consumption.

Armpits laced with lemon juice

In Puerto Rico, it is common practice to rub a slice of lemon in one’s armpit before commencing a night of drinking. Puerto Rican lore states that lemon prevents sweating, which thereby retains internal fluids and thus prevents dehydration and headaches. 


Sweating it out

Bizarre Hangover Cures Sweat

Source: Archive

According to Native Americans, the best way to rid oneself of a night of drinking and debauchery is to kick up a sweat, lick that sweat and then spit it out.


Animal Parts

Bizarre Hangover Cures Animal Parts

There are also various animal-laced cures around the world for hangovers. Mongolians drink pickled sheep’s eyes in tomato juice; cowboys used to drink tea with rabbit droppings; some Vietnamese people crush Rhino horns into hot water; and Sicilians eat a dried bull’s penis.

author
Savannah Cox
author
Savannah Cox holds a Master's in International Affairs from The New School as well as a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Sheffield. Her work as a writer has also appeared on DNAinfo.
editor
Savannah Cox
editor
Savannah Cox holds a Master's in International Affairs from The New School as well as a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley, and now serves as an Assistant Professor at the University of Sheffield. Her work as a writer has also appeared on DNAinfo.