So we’re about to celebrate the solstice event late but call it Hogmanay, or “New Year’s” like we do every time the Earth complete’s a circuit of its orbit around the Sun. You’re probably musing on the idea of having a few beers, a glass or two of wine or maybe some of the harder stuff, unless you’re teetotal, of course. And, as often is the case you may overindulge a little and be expecting to begin 2010 with a crushing headache and gut rot – the telltale signs of a hangover.

So, what can you do to stop yourself getting a hangover, other than reducing the amount of alcohol you imbibe?

Well, according to James Garbutt of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine who specializes in alcoholism treatment and research, there is actually nothing you can do that is scientifically proven. There are no great hangover cures, despite anecdotal evidence of the “hair of the dog that bit you”, an English breakfast, bananas, plenty of water, coffee, milk thistle extract etc etc.

“The most important message I would emphasize is that people shouldn’t drink too much in the first place,” says Garbutt. “Hangover is one negative consequence of excess alcohol consumption but there are many others, including accidents, which can be serious, loss of control over emotions such as anger or sadness, and bad decision-making exemplified by the classic office party gone wrong.”

All that said, there are steps you can take to enjoy a few drinks responsibly and reduce the risk of getting a hangover. Responsible drinking also involves the risk of succumbing to acute fatal alcohol poisoning too!

“Eating food is an important element in reducing risk of intoxication,” Garbutt explains. Eat a meal before you take your first sip of alcohol, he advises, and continue to take in food as the night wears on. Food, fats especially, help slow down the body’s absorption of alcohol. But to truly be effective, the food must be in your stomach first. If you wait until you’re feeling buzzed or tipsy to start eating, it’s already too late.

Another good way to pace yourself: After finishing a drink with alcohol, drink a glass of water or a soft drink before your next round. This will both dilute the concentration of alcohol in your blood and help prevent dehydration, Garbutt adds.

And if you ignore this advice and end up with a hangover anyway, there are things you can do that, while not a cure, will aid in your recovery. For example, taking a painkiller just before you go to sleep and then again when you wake up will help reduce your headache pain. But it’s best to avoid aspirin, because alcohol can aggravate gastritis and aspirin can increase risk of gastric erosion and bleeding. Acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol and paracetamol, isn’t a good idea either because in combination with alcohol it can cause serious liver damage.

A sports drink, like Gatorade, might help with rehydration levels and replace lost salts caused by the increased rate of urination that drinking the diuretic alcohol causes.

What about those hangover “cures” we’ve all heard about? Drinking coffee? Doesn’t help. Hair of the dog that bit you (i.e., drinking one more round of whatever caused your hangover)? All that does is delay the start of your recovery. Eating a big, greasy bacon and egg breakfast, or any other legendary “morning after” meal? Might’ve helped if you’d eaten it before you started drinking…