The Scientific Reason Hangovers Get Worse As You Age

As people age, they tend to complain about their inability to "hang" like they used to. But does youth really have any relation to how you recover from a weekend of heavy-duty drinking? Well, according to science: YES.

But first a little bit of context.

Hangovers are caused by the liver turning the highly-toxic chemical in alcohol, acetaldehyde, into a non-toxic chemical called acetate. However, if you're chugging drinks faster than the hour it takes for your liver to process it, the toxin goes into your bloodstream and poisons your system, thus the dreaded hangover.

So what happens as you age? Your body gets fed up, that's what.

"As we get older, our livers produce less antioxidants, and the toxins end up passing through our bodies causing headaches, vomiting and all those other really fun hangover experiences," explains fitness expert Ricki Friedman of Break The Weight to Elite Daily.

Gaining weight — which happens to a lot of people as they age — also has an imapct on your day-after aches. "Our fat percentage increases, which leads to a higher blood alcohol content," Friedman says.

So don't feel THAT bad when it's your time to retire beer pong — apparently, it was inevitable.