What impact does a state of alcohol hangover have upon everyday prospective memory and does this differ for men and women

Abstract

Introduction The Alcohol Hangover State (AHS) is characterized by range of symptoms (e.g., drowsiness, fatigue, gastro-intestinal problems, dry mouth, nausea, sweating) that remain after ones blood-alcohol level returns to zero following a recent bout of excessive drinking. A recent study found deficits in everyday prospective memory (PM: memory for future plans/actions; such as remembering to meet with friends or to perform a task at a specific time) associated with the AHS. Objectives Given the importance of PM to everyday living, it is important to attempt to verify these findings. Aims The present study aimed to provide converging evidence on the impact AHS has upon PM and extend this focus to explore whether any sex differences relating to AHS and PM exist. Methods Twenty-six AHS participants (13 males/13 females) were compared with 27 non-AHS controls (12 males/15 females) using a between-groups design. All completed a Virtual Reality Prospective Memory Test (VRPMT) was used as an objective test of time-based and event-based PM. Results The AHS group recalled significantly fewer time-based and event-based PM tasks on VRPMT compared with the non-AHS control group. There was a sex and hangover interaction on time based PM, with the male AHS group recalling significantly fewer items than the female AHS group. Conclusions These results confirm the deleterious impact of AHS upon PM and further reveal that males who are in an AHS are significantly more impaired in their time-based PM than females in an AHS, a novel addition to the literature.