Does drinking alcohol kill germs? Although alcohol is a well-known disinfectant, can it help for treating stomach infections, throat infections etc? In fact in the past wine was known for its disinfecting and cleansing abilities and we even use it in alcohol.
In a 1988 study, beer and carbonated drinks were tested and found to have an effect on bacteria such as E.Coli, Shigella and Salmonella but wine had the most effective result.
Later studies found that red wine had intense antibacterial activity, partly due to its acid pH and alcohol concentration.
The alcohol content plays an important role, the higher the alcohol concentration the greater the ability to kill bugs. Studies show that alcohol contents less than 40% had little effect on bacteria.
But don’t turn to alcohol to kill germs in the stomach. In a recent study involving 47 human volunteers, different alcohol concentrations or saline, were directly added to the stomach and it was observed that the greater the concentration of alcohol the worse the damage to the stomach.