Forget the fry-up, just have coffee and an aspirin if you want to cure your hangover

A fry-up, hair of the dog, raw eggs…ideas for what will cure a hangover are as plentiful as the types of drink that will start one.

But the best treatment for a sore head is more prosaic, say researchers – an aspirin and a coffee.

Scientists found the caffeine in coffee and the anti-inflammatory ingredients of painkillers countered the effects of alcohol.

Perfect cure: Coffee and aspirin have been revealed by scientists to be the best thing to take if nursing a bad hangover

Michael Oshinsky and colleagues at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia tested the effect of low doses of pure alcohol on rats prone to migraines.

Because low doses typically cause headaches in migraine patients, this allowed them to study an alcohol-induced headache without the complication of the rats being drunk.

Four hours after drinking, the skin around the rats’ eyes became sensitive, a sign they had a headache. They found that giving them doses of caffeine and anti-inflammatory painkillers which relieved their discomfort.

One of the major causes of hangovers is a chemical called acetate, a by-product of how the body processes alcohol. Caffeine and certain types of painkiller block its effects.

Because of this, says Professor Oshinsky, the best time to take them would be about four hours after drinking, when acetate levels begin to peak.

He also found the rats were not dehydrated, going against the theory that coffee should not be used as a hangover cure because it is a mild diuretic and could cause further dehydration.

The research will spark a new debate over just what is the best cure for a throbbing head after a night on the tiles.

Some argue drinking water is better than a caffeinated drink because it fully rehydrates the body, while others swear by the restorative powers of a full English breakfast.

Others advise against using painkillers such as aspirin and ibuprofen as they can cause stomach upsets after a heavy night out.

They say this is because they give the liver work to do when it is already stretched from breaking down the alcohol consumed hours before.