Liquor on the Front End

Drinking alcohol has long been rumored to cure the common cold. While there is no scientific evidence to substantiate these claims (usually made by folks who cite Jack Daniels as ubiquitous cure-all), research has shown that alcohol consumption can help ward off a cold prior to infection.

Two large studies have found that although moderate drinking will not cure colds, it can help keep them at bay. One, by researchers at Carnegie Mellon in 1993, looked at 391 adults and found that resistance to colds increased with moderate drinking, except in smokers.

Then, in 2002, researchers in Spain followed 4,300 healthy adults, examining their habits and susceptibility to colds. The study, in The American Journal of Epidemiology, found no relationship between the incidence of colds and consumption of beer, spirits, Vitamin C or zinc. But drinking 8 to 14 glasses of wine per week, particularly red wine, was linked to as much as a 60 percent reduction in the risk of developing a cold. The scientists suspected this had something to do with the antioxidant properties of wine.

So as you trudge through the holiday party circuit and inevitably find yourself putting egg nogg and assorted spirits to lips, feel good that you are doing your immune system a favor. Though, in the morning, your head may disagree.