How to cure a Christmas hangover There are a few good steps for curing a Christmas hangover, says nutritionist Sara Andrew. Photo: Julian Kingma Forget fast food and soft drink - or even the hair of the dog - there are healthier ways to recover from over indulgence on Christmas Day. Sara Andrew, a nutritionist at Wintergarden Mall's Pharmacy Outlet, has devised a seven-step healthy hangover cure just in time for Christmas. A combination of pasta, coconut water and supplements will give you all the nutrients you need to kickstart a dehydrated and run-down body, she says. The process starts with an avocado pasta dish she says makes the perfect replacement for unhealthy comfort food. The meal, which Ms Andrew learnt off her mother, is nutrient dense, with protein from Quinoa pasta, fat from avocado, and anti inflammatory nutrients from the garlic for the gut and immune system. Meanwhile the full-fat, pot-set Greek yoghurt helps to restore beneficial gut flora in the intestines which alcohol has disrupted. The dish is a winning combination when you're hurting after a big Christmas meal, Ms Andrew says. ""It will be getting the fat and the carbs for your tastebuds, but it is actually really nutritious for the body and it will help you to recover better, more effectively and give your body a whole stack of nutrients it will need to recover to get on with the day and the following days afterwards,"" she said. She also recommends coconut water to replenish the dehydrated body with electrolytes, milk thistle to help with detoxification, and charcoal capsules to absorb toxins from the gut. She also advises taking weight loss supplements carnitine and hydroxycitric acid to burn fat after all the unhealthy food on offer on Christmas Day, fat which can be turned into energy to help fight through a hangover. You can also start the recovery process the night before by taking a B vitamin and drinking coconut water before you hit the hay. ""Vitamin B3 is required for the enzymatic breakdown of alcohol within the body, so having that beforehand and after is effective in making sure that the body can break down and detoxercise the alcohol out of their body so they don't suffer so much the next day or the day after,"" she said. Be Free personal trainer Tracey Guile recommends those letting loose over the next couple of days to drink a glass of water with any alcoholic drink they have, as well as two or three glasses before they go to sleep to prevent dehydration. Inclined towards using Berocca, water and sleep to combat a hangover herself, Ms Guile says it is best to avoid greasy, fatty food altogether. ""As soon as you put alcohol into your body everything you eat while you are drinking gets automatically stored, because your body's first priority is to burn off the alcohol which is a toxin,"" she said. ""The body actually can't metabolize those fatty foods as your metabolism slows down."" Eat a avocado pasta dish (quinoa pasta, avocado, garlic, Greek yoghurt and parmesan cheese) Drink coconut water before during and after eating the dish Take milk thistle and Vitamin B before during and after the meal Take charcoal capsules to absorb toxins Take carnitine and hydroxycitric acid to burn fat Poll: What's your favourite hangover cure? Fast food and soft drink Anything greasy Exercise Going to the movies - sitting in the aircon and eat junk food Water and Vitamin B tablets Hair of the dog - drinking alcohol again the next day Powerade and panadol Chocolate Coca Cola Vegemite Berocca Cutting off your head to stop the constant banging Other (please leave in the comments below) Total votes: 140.