‘My Greek friends swear by this‘: Woman tests trick to preventing a hangover

The Ancient Greeks called Olive Oil “liquid gold,” and it’s not just because they liked to drizzle it on food. There were numerous usage scenarios they found for the substance. Science Direct wrote: “Ancient peoples used olive oil not just for consumption and cooking, but also as perfume, anointment for the dead, soap, and lights. In ancient Greece, athletes ritually rubbed it all over their bodies. It has been the fountain of great wealth and power, anointing the noblest of heads throughout history.”

And according to music producer Benny Blanco, if you take a shot of olive oil before a night of drinking, hangovers can very well become a thing of the past.

He discussed it on an episode of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, which was posted to TikTok. In the interview, Blanco and Fallon can be seen sitting at a table in what looks like set dressing for a dinner-type scenario.

“Olive oil. You take a shot. My friend, my friend Nino taught me this. These old guys from Italy came in. They said, ‘Before you drink, you take a shot of this, you can’t get hungover. Impossible,” Blanco tells the SNL alum, who then turns to the audience, holding a cup of olive oil in his hand, “Have you ever heard of this?”

A resounding, “no” can be heard off camera, which seemingly prompts Blanco to defend the knowledge he’s imparting on those around him. “It coats—who said yes?” Blanco asks the audience.

Fallon then jokes about the yay-sayer being Nino, and then they take their shots of olive oil, which they refer to as “peppery.” Blanco and Fallon begin to take sips of wine before the clip cuts out.

It’s this advice that a TikToker named Jess (@itssjessc) decided to put to the test. She uploaded a video with a caption questioning if extra virgin olive oil could be a useful tool in helping to prevent hangovers: “What am I listening to Benny Blanco?”

However, she resolves to try it out anyway, writing, “idk but i’ll see if this works.”

“So Benny Blanco said that if you take a shot of olive oil before you drink you won’t have a hangover it’s like impossible so we’re gonna put it to the test,” she says, holding up a shot glass of olive oil. She exclaims that she’s “nervous” before taking a swig and then gagging on camera.

So how well did the shot work? Did it work at all?

Jess did provide an update in a separate TikTok, stating that she believed the shot of olive oil did a decent job of minimizing the effects of her hangover, but it wasn’t a cure-all like some folks would like to believe.

“Update: it helped. I’m not gonna say it’s gonna fully cure you from a hangover if you drink a lot. But I’m a lightweight and usually the next morning, no matter how many drinks I have, I’m just not feeling very good,” she says. “And I feel fine right now, like I feel way better than I typically do. I will say also…right after drinking the olive oil shot, because it’s so thick, you don’t really taste the like, first couple of shots you take after that, that is also a plus.”

However, Jess shared one word of warning. “I probably wouldn’t recommend doing more than one olive oil shot though throughout the night because I did see a lot of comments of people saying that it makes you want to go to the bathroom,” she concludes.

So, according to Jess, her olive oil hangover prevention shot worked.

However, pharmacy chain Uniprix says that there isn’t any medical evidence that proves olive oil shots can reduce the effects of a hangover: “Taking a tablespoon of olive oil before drinking alcohol will reduce the likelihood of a hangover. FALSE. The protective effect of olive oil on the stomach is very short-lived. Once it dissipates, you are once again vulnerable to the impact of the alcohol and its unwanted side effects.”

Delish, however, mentioned that there are people who believe there’s some merit to Blanco’s claim, like Employees Only founder Dushan Zaric. He said in an interview with GQ, “It is a good idea to drink one ounce of lemon juice and one ounce of cold pressed virgin olive oil mixed with cinnamon before you go out to drink. Lemon juice is alkalizing and it will balance the acidity that alcohol brings into your system. It will help your liver to cleanse better and faster. Olive oil will line your stomach and let the alcohol absorb into your system at a slower rate.”

The Association of UK Dietitians, Delish pointed out, however, maintained that there are no medical findings that suggest olive oil is an effective tool in the fight against hangovers. “The technique, which is popular in Mediterranean countries, doesn’t do much and there is actually ‘no such thing as lining your stomach…Around 20% of alcohol is absorbed in the stomach and the rest is absorbed in the intestine,” they report. “So any food containing fat, protein or, to some extent, carbohydrate that delays your stomach emptying could have a very modest effect on slowing down the absorption of alcohol.'”

Some commenters on Jess’ video, however, believe that there is merit to the technique.

“You don’t really need a shot glass usually 2 tablespoons should be enough & make sure you do it atleast 30-45min before you start drinking. It basically lubricants the lining of your stomach and helps,” one person penned.

Someone else said, “My aunts use to do this.”

One TikToker added, “My Greek friends swear by this.”

But others didn’t seem to be big fans of this approach.

“I tried and threw up before i got my second drink down,” one said.

“Idk taking a shot of olive oil i think would instantly make me puke,” someone else remarked.

The Daily Dot has reached out to Jess via TikTok comment for further information.

The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s web_crawlr newsletter here to get the best (and worst) of the internet straight into your inbox.