Intake of wine, beer, and spirits and the risk of clinical common cold

To examine whether intakes of wine, beer, spirits, and total alcohol are associated with the risk of common cold, in 1998-1999 the authors analyzed data from a cohort study carried out in a population of 4,272 faculty and staff of five Spanish universities. Usual alcohol intake was assessed at baseline by means of a standardized frequency questionnaire that was validated in a random sample of the population. The authors detected 1,353 cases of common cold. Total alcohol intake and beer and spirits consumption were not related to the occurrence of common cold, whereas consumption of wine was inversely associated with the risk of common cold. When drinkers of >14 glasses of wine per week were compared with teetotalers, the relative risk was 0.6 (95% confidence interval: 0.4, 0.8) after adjustment for age, sex, and faculty/staff status. The association was stronger for red wine. These results remained unaltered after adjustment for total alcohol intake and for other potential risk factors for common cold. Findings suggest that wine intake, especially red wine, may have a protective effect against common cold. Beer, spirits, and total alcohol intakes do not seem to affect the incidence of common cold.