More than two years have now passed since the beginning of the Pandemic and there have been countless reports of possible remedies that could at least protect us from Covid-19. Strange as it may seem, many remedies have been combined with the already known beneficial effects that derive from drinking wine, with due moderation.

But is it just an unfounded thought or is there a grain of truth?

It is thanks to Chinese scientific research that we can find an answer with more certain bases.
The study published in Frontiers in Nutrition was conducted at the Shenzhen Kangning hospital in China, on data provided by the UK Biobank archive. For the research, 473,957 subjects were analyzed, of which 16,559 tested positive for Covid, studying their drinking habits during the pandemic. A mathematical model then examined the influence of different alcoholic beverages on Covid.

The results were surprising, because they confirmed that red wine protects against Coronavirus infections, while white wine and sparkling wines protect against infection to a slightly lesser extent. Basically, those who consume 4 or 5 glasses of red wine a day are 17% less likely to contract the Coronavirus, while those who consume 4 or 5 glasses of white or sparkling wine see the probability drop somewhat to 8%. Scientists believe that polyphenols play the key role.

The polyphenolic content (concentrated in red wine) has antioxidant properties, decreases blood pressure, inhibiting the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein particles and producing other favorable effects on the state of cell regeneration, such as the activation of proteins that prevent cell death . SARS-CoV 2 not only attacks the respiratory system, but also the circulatory system. Studying 63 patients it was found that moderate alcohol consumption has positive effects on the cardiovascular system. Polyphenols are actually already widely known and used in medicine to protect against influenza and respiratory viruses. Who knows that one day we will not be able to produce a polyphenol-based drug that protects against Covid19. For beer lovers, however, the news is not good: research has found that those who drink any amount of beer or cider see the possibility of contracting Covid increase by 28%, compared to other alcoholic beverages.

However, the researchers warn against the excessive consumption of alcohol in the pandemic; in fact, if the guidelines are exceeded, there is in general a higher risk of infection with the virus.