Â鶹´«Ã½

If you have a few drinks, does the alcohol in your bloodstream act as medication against any microbes in the body?

• There can be a protective effect, but only if the alcohol concentration is high enough. A is one of the few to confirm the benefits of drinking alcohol with a meal. During an oyster-borne outbreak of hepatitis A, those drinking alcohol of 10 per cent strength or higher experienced a protective effect.

I would argue that for the sake of your health total daily consumption should be moderate, the equivalent of two glasses of table wine.

Lewis Perdue, Sonoma, California, US

We pay £25 for every answer published in Â鶹´«Ã½. To answer this question – or ask a new one – visit newscientist.com/lastword. Terms and conditions apply.

This article appeared in print under the headline “Disease-proof”