It’s an old hiker’s tale that if the water you drink is reasonably clean, but not perfectly up to scratch, drinking a small shot of strong spirits in the morning and evening prevents stomach upset.
I’ve heard a lot of anecdotes in support comparing travelers/hikers who did this to those who didn’t, but it still sounds odd. To be clear, I’m not talking about preventing serious ilnesses, more like diarrhea and stomach ache to the point where it’s inconvenient, but not dangerous.
Is there something to it? Is there a reason for all those anecdotes beyond confirmation bias?
In: 0
Like any anecdote, I doubt anyone has ever done a scientific experiment on it. However, I would think the plausible explanation is that alcohol is poisonous and kills things like bacteria. Food poisoning is caused by bacteria growth, and I would think if you drank enough alcohol it would have the effect of essentially disinfecting whatever bad food or water you ingested. This would not however prevent something like botulism since it is not caused by the bacteria itself, but the bacteria’s waste products.
Latest Answers