Skip to main content

Does Water Help with Alcohol Detox?

By November 25, 2022August 14th, 2024Sober living

how much water to flush out alcohol

Here are some tips for what to eat and not to eat as you flush alcohol out of your system. Amy Myers, MD is a two-time New York Times bestselling author and an internationally acclaimed functional medicine physician.Dr. Myers specializes in empowering those with autoimmune, thyroid, and digestive issues to reverse their conditions and take back their health.

how much water to flush out alcohol

How EtG Is Eliminated From the Body

Whether you’re spending time with friends or trying to unwind after a long day, many of us enjoy having a cocktail or cracking open a cold beer occasionally. In order to change your drinking habits, your first step is to take a close look at your current behaviors and find patterns. Common  medications include benzodiazepines to help treat symptoms like anxiety, insomnia, and seizures. You might also take anti-seizure meds and antipsychotics, along with other drugs. If you decide to get treatment, your doctor can recommend the type of care that you need.

how much water to flush out alcohol

What are the risks of drinking too much water to flush out alcohol?

Generally, it is recommended to drink at least one cup (8-ounce) of water for every alcoholic beverage consumed. Drink plenty of water and electrolytes each day to help your kidneys flush out toxins from your system. Experts advise drinking 91–125 fluid ounces of water or more daily. Switch things up with tea or a squeeze of lemon or lime if you want something different than straight water. Green tea may improve your blood pressure and cholesterol levels, both of which may reduce your heart disease risk. Your body absorbs alcohol more slowly when you have food in your stomach.

How To Help Your Body’s Detox Processes

If you believe your post-alcohol discomfort is related to withdrawal, you should seek professional help from an alcohol detox program. Experiencing withdrawal when you stop drinking indicates a dependence on alcohol, and it may be difficult to quit drinking on your own. It can also be dangerous to quit cold turkey once you have developed an alcohol use disorder (AUD). A urine ethylglucuronide (EtG) test can detect alcohol for up to 48 hours after your last drink. If you have been drinking heavily, alcohol can continue to show up in your urine for up to 72 hours or more.

how much water to flush out alcohol

How to Flush Alcohol Out From Your Body

But like any test, there is the possibility for a false positive. This is why a positive test should be confirmed either with another test or with verification from the person that they how much water to flush out alcohol did indeed drink alcohol. In studies of participants without alcohol use disorders, EtG has been detected in urine samples for up to 80 hours (3.3 days) after heavy alcohol exposure.

What Is a Detox for Your Body?

As you age, alcohol remains in your system longer because your body becomes less efficient at metabolizing it. Older adults also tend to have a lower volume of total body water, which can slow down alcohol metabolism. Alcohol is detectable in hair follicles much longer than blood, saliva, breath, or urine. A hair follicle ethylglucuronide (EtG) test will reveal alcohol use for up to 90 days after consumption.

  • Alcohol is detectable in hair follicles much longer than blood, saliva, breath, or urine.
  • Sufficient rest will help reduce stress and inflammation so your body can function at its best.
  • It is important to drink plenty of water or other non-alcoholic drinks in between alcoholic drinks.
  • This test measures blood alcohol concentration (BAC), or the amount of alcohol in your blood.

Having some guidance on how to flush alcohol from your body might help make this an easier task. Knowing how much to drink is challenging, and there is no one-size-fits-all answer. Water helps remove the waste products from the blood in the form of urine.

How to contact United Healthcare

how much water to flush out alcohol

Alcohol can be detected in sweat, urine and the breath for at least as long as the liver is breaking down alcohol. This means that you can detect it with a blood test for up to 12 hours after your last drink and up to 2 months via a hair test. A breathalyzer, on the other hand, can detect alcohol for hours depending on how much you drank and the test. Urine tests can detect alcohol anywhere from 12 to 80 hours after your last drink.

How Long Can Alcohol Be Detected on a Urine Test?

how much water to flush out alcohol

danblomberg

Author danblomberg

More posts by danblomberg