The coronavirus emergency has earned some clever people to spread fake news about hypothetical benefits related to alcohol consumption. Instead, it needs to be clarified why, at this stage especially, it is appropriate to eliminate or minimize the consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Alcohol and Health, Viral Deception
Assoenologi, ‘regarding the Covid-19 emergency (…) after a discussion with important representatives of the medical community, notes‘ that the risk of transmission through the nectar of Bacchus should be excluded. As, moreover, already clarified-in relation to food and beverages in general-both by the Ministry of Health, on 2.3.20, and by EFSA(European Food Safety Authority), on 9.3.20.
Viral Deception
. The viral deception proposed by Assoenologi lies in the claim that ”Moderate wine consumption, linked to responsible drinking, can contribute to better sanitation of the oral cavity and pharynx. Area, the latter, where viruses nest in the course of infections.’ (1) Instead of seizing the opportunity of the ongoing pandemic to draw the attention of its members (winemakers and wine technicians) to essential hygienic measures – minimum safety distances, frequent hand washing, sanitization of surfaces and objects, use of masks, and other measures stipulated in Protocol 14.3.20 (with a nod to employers’ responsibilities) – the president of Assoenologi promotes wine consumption as a ‘sanitizing’ solution. It is useful then to recall the hidden truths.
Alcohol and health, the hidden truths
The association between alcoholic beverage consumption and cancer occurrence is one of the few certainties on which science has converged for decades now. Correlations are known between alcohol consumption and cancer occurrence in the oropharynx, larynx, esophagus, liver, colorectum, and breast. (2) Women are at greater risk, compared with men, due to their reduced ability to metabolize alcohol (due to lower expression of genes encoding enzymes imputed to its degradation). (3)
Cardiovascular disease-the leading cause of premature mortality worldwide (4)-is in turn associated with, among other things, excessive alcohol consumption. The risk is lower, but still present, even if consumption is ‘very moderate.’ (5) Some studies that appeared to show a correlation between moderate alcohol consumption and hypothesized protective effects with respect to cardiovascular disease, on the other hand, were found to be unconfirmable. (6)
Depression-another disease of high prevalence on a planetary scale, often undiagnosed-is also associated with alcoholic beverage intake, among other causes. (7) Alcohol consumption can lead to depression and/or aggravate it. And it is often the state of depression already in progress that initiates chronic abusive alcohol consumption, mistakenly regarded as a form of ‘self-medication’. (8)
Alcohol and the immune system
The immune system can become severely compromised by regular alcohol consumption, which contributes to the development of various diseases including sepsis, liver disease and respiratory system disease (pneumonia). It should therefore be avoided, especially in the Covid-19 era. Precisely because the impairment of the immune system, in weakening the body’s defenses, increases vulnerability to agents that lead to the development of various diseases. (9)
The gut microbiota-which regulates several essential functions, including the immune system-is itself negatively affected by alcohol. Its influx alters the intestinal microbial composition, reducing the ability to defend against pathogenic microorganisms that can trigger various diseases. With injury to, among other things, the intestinal epithelium and leukocytes (responsible for defenses via antibodies. See note 10).
Alcohol and consumption, basics
World Health Organization(WHO) researchers consider the limit dose of alcohol to be … zero. At any concentration, adverse health effects can indeed be observed. The only way to rule out problems associated with alcohol consumption with certainty is to do without it.
Any possible favorable aspects, such as the polyphenols in wine, are not sufficient to offset the problems associated with consumption. The most susceptible population groups are young people, who are also at risk for possible damage to the central nervous system, which ends its development at age 25. In addition to women, as mentioned above, and the over-65s. (11)
Alcohol abuse is endemic in relevance, in Italy and Europe as in the rest of the planet, with exceptions in some Islamic-majority countries. (4)
Alcohol, obesity and overweight
The Covid-19 emergency is forcing most Italian and European citizens to stay at home. Since this is the most effective measure of containment of a highly contagious virus that is transmitted between humans. The resulting sedentariness should be given due consideration in the daily energy balance. That is, in the ratio of energy (kcal) taken in through food and drink to the energy consumed by each of us.
The energy value of alcohol-which is still, shamefully, hidden on the labels of almost all alcoholic beverages in Europe-is 7 kcal per gram. Slightly lower than that of butter (7.58 kcal/g. CREA Source,
Food Composition Tables
, 2019), to wit.
If the energy balance is excessive, the body mass index (BMI) tends to increase, causing or exacerbating pathological conditions of overweight and obesity that are already prevalent, in Italy and Europe as in the rest of the world.
Obesity and overweight expose people to the risk of numerous seriousNon-Communicable Dise ases(NCDs), not the least of which is the development of diabetes mellitus. (12) This form of diabetes can also develop in non-obese individuals, as well, due to alcohol exposure. (13)
Alcoholic beverages, a real necessity?
The Mediterranean diet offers a valuable model for maintaining good health and fit weight ( Body Mass Index, or BMI). The sedentary lifestyle imposed by coronavirus containment measures, therefore, requires reducing daily energy intake. We can then review our daily diet, eliminating (or at least minimizing) what is not essential. First and foremost are ultra-processed, often junk food (which accounts for more than 68 percent of the products aimed at minors, as noted above, in the European Union) and alcohol. Combination, the product categories on which irresponsiblemarketing is most aggressive and unregulated.
Alcohol, it should be noted, is the only energy source that the human body does not need. Indeed, presenting toxicity that is among other risk factors for the development of various acute and chronic degenerative diseases. Many fake news stories regarding hypothetical positive effects of alcohol in combating coronavirus have already been debunked by the WHO. The World Health Organization has insisted on the need to warn the world’s population about the adverse effects of alcohol consumption and its contact with the skin (when used, without the recommended dilutions, to disinfect the hands and body). (14)
The harmful health effects and the risk of unconscious and unconscious intake by the population have indeed determined the WHO to promote special public education programs aimed at reducing harmful alcohol consumption globally. (15) To promote awareness of individual consumption, the World Health Organization has made available a questionnaire to find out whether individual alcohol consumption is excessive and potentially hazardous to health. (16)
Drink consciously, water first!
Dario Dongo and Andrea Adelmo Dalla Penna
Notes
(1) Coronavirus and wine: the opinion of Assoenologi, https://www.assoenologi.it/comunicato_stampa/coronavirus-e-il-vino-il-parere-di-assoenologi/. The original press release, signed by President Riccardo Cottarelli, 12.3.20, at https://www.newsfood.com/coronavirus-un-bicchiere-di-vino-non-ci-salva-dal-virus/
(2) IARC (2009). IARC monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans. Volume 100E – Personal habits and indoor combustions. Lyon: International Agency for Research on Cancer
(3) Bagnardi V. et al. (2015). Alcohol consumption and site-specific cancer risk: a comprehensive dose-response meta-analysis. Br. J. Cancer. 112(3):580-93. doi: 10.1038/bjc.2014.579
(4) WHO (2018) Global status report on alcohol and health 2018. eISBN: 9789241565639 https://www.who.int/publications-detail/global-status-report-on-alcohol-and-health-2018
(5) Leong D.P. et al. (2014). Patterns of alcohol consumption and myocardial infarction risk: observations from 52 countries in the INTERHEART case-control study. Circulation. 113(5):390-8. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.113.007627
(6) Holmes M.V. al. (2014). Association between alcohol and cardiovascular disease: Mendelian randomization analysis based on individual participant data. BMJ. 349:g4164. doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.g4164
(7) Rehm J. et al. (2017). The relationship between different dimensions of alcohol use and the burden of disease-an update. Addiction. 112(6):968-1001. doi:10.1111/add.13757
(8) Bolton J.M. et al. (2009). Self-medication of mood disorders with alcohol and drugs in the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. J. Affect. Disord. 115(3):367-75. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2008.10.003
(9) Sarkar D. et al. (2015). Alcohol and the immune system. Alcohol Res. 37(2):153-5. PMCID: PMC4590612
(10) Engen P.A. et al. (2015). The gastrointestinal microbiome: Alcohol effects on the composition of intestinal microbiota. Alcohol Res.;37(2):223-3
(11) WHO. Q&A – How can i drink alcohol safely? http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/disease-prevention/alcohol-use/data-and-statistics/q-and-a-how-can-i-drink-alcohol-safely
(12) Malone J.I. et al. (2019) Does obesity cause type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)? Or is it the opposite? Pediatr Diabetes. ;20(1):5-9. doi: 10.1111/pedi.12787.l
(13) Greenhouse L. et al. (1996) Alcohol-associated diabetes mellitus. A review of the impact of alcohol consumption on carbohydrate metabolism. Arch Fam Med.; 5(4):229-33. doi: 10.1001/archfami.5.4.229
(14) WHO. Harmful use of alcohol. https://www.who.int/health-topics/alcohol
(15) WHO. WHO to accelerate action to reduce the harmful use of alcohol. 03/28/2020 https://www.who.int/news-room/detail/28-03-2020-who-to-accelerate-action-to-reduce-the-harmful-use-of-alcohol
(16) WHO. Do you drink too much? Test your own alcohol consumption with the AUDIT test. http://www.euro.who.int/en/health-topics/disease-prevention/alcohol-use/data-and-statistics/q-and-a-how-can-i-drink-alcohol-safely/do-you-drink-too-much-test-your-own-alcohol-consumption-with-the-audit-test
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
Graduated in Food Technologies and Biotechnologies, qualified food technologist, he follows the research and development area. With particular regard to European research projects (in Horizon 2020, PRIMA) where the FARE division of WIISE Srl, a benefit company, participates.
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