Patchy Hangover

No sooner has the United States invented 'Bytox' Hangover Prevention Patch launched in the UK than it is being banned by the Medicines and Healthcare Agency, who consider it to be an unlicensed medicine - as it claims to prevent hangovers. One might have hoped that prevention was better than cure and if you are not ill when you take it, or it is to be hoped, afterwards, is it a medicine at all? The Hangover Patch replaces vitamins and folic acid (through a patch - like a nicotine patch - on the arm) which are usually lost during the diuretic process, which is a consequence of drinking. This system is superior to a pill because it allows for continuous release over a long period. It is applied 45 minutes before consuming alcohol - so it could be fixed at about the same time as you are putting on your glad rags to go out - and then it is recommended that it should be left in place for up to 8 hours afterwards. (On this basis there will be some who might have to consider whether they wear it permanently - perhaps on the forehead would be best). Even so, the Bytox website is emphatic that it "will not prevent you getting drunk and definitely won't prevent embarrassing and/or regrettable behaviour." Now that would have been a real medicine.