Spicy, savory, and spiked, the Bloody Mary has long been heralded as a brunch cocktail capable of curing your morning-after hangover. The hair-of-the-dog drink — which typically involves vodka, tomato juice, lemon juice, and Worcestershire along with a slew of seasonings and (often silly) garnishes — is one of the 20 most popular cocktails in the world. While the drink isn’t technically medicinal, Bloody Mary evangelists might actually be onto something when they order one post-party. According to research, the build’s tomato juice might be doing more than just satisfying your taste buds.
According to a 2012 study conducted by Japanese researchers at tomato-based foods manufacturer Kagome Co. Ltd. and soft drink and brewer Asahi Group Holdings, consuming tomatoes alongside alcohol has the potential to speed up the liver’s metabolic process, thus dampening alcohol’s harmful impact on the body. The study analyzed 12 healthy Japanese men between the ages of 24 and 56. Each subject was provided with 0.4 grams of alcohol per kilogram of their own body weight during both the experimental and control phases, which took place a week apart. Participants consumed their allotted alcohol mixed with diluted tomato paste in the first phase and mixed with distilled water in the second.
After observing each participant for 180 minutes post-consumption, researchers found that their blood alcohol content (BAC) registered significantly lower after drinking the tomato-based concoction. While consuming the water-based control beverage, participants’ BACs reached a level of 0.42 milligrams per milliliter at 60 minutes, with blood ethanol levels falling to about half that at the 180-minute mark. When consuming the tomato-based test beverage, BACs peaked around 0.30 mg/mL, before decreasing at a similar rate.
The researchers concluded that not only can tomatoes slow the elevation of blood alcohol levels, but they can also shorten the amount of time it takes for the body to eliminate toxins from booze. When the two groups were compared, results revealed that the diluted tomato paste mixture sped up alcohol elimination times by roughly one hour. Researchers also uncovered higher levels of blood acetate, pyruvate, and lactate in the same group, three clear signs of the metabolism at work. Based on the results of this limited sample size, the scientists concluded that tomatoes can have an accelerative effect on the metabolic process when consuming alcohol.
A similar study was conducted in 2015 by the nutrition and cancer biology lab at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. In the study, department director Dr. Xiang-Dong Wang and his team analyzed the impact of tomatoes on rats exposed to 100 grams of alcohol daily for four weeks. Out of the tomato products used (powder, extract, and purified lycopene, which gives tomatoes their red color), the tomato powder, which was meant to mimic the consumption of a whole tomato, was most effective at protecting the liver. While these results are promising, similar studies have yet to be performed on humans.
All said, tomatoes and their juice can’t sober you up instantly or stop a hangover in its tracks but for those who may be needing a bit of a nutrient boost after a rowdy night out, a Bloody Mary certainly won’t hurt.
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