Is Pálinka really a magic cure?

A lot of people believe that spirits (especially pálinka and wine) are great disinfectants, or that they can help prevent or even cure throat and stomach diseases. 24.hu recently published an article in which they are examining the common beliefs regarding the medical effects of alcoholic drinks, arguing that the stories might not be one hundred percent true.

Applied to wounds or on skin

The first problem that arises when we are trying to sanitize a skin area with spirits, is that

alcoholic drinks contain ethanol, which actually takes a lot of water away from the cells, thus drying your skin.

This is the main reason why antiseptics containing isopropanol are used for disinfecting. In conclusion, ethanol in itself is not advised to be applied as a disinfectant neither on the skin, let alone on wounds.

Does it help if it is consumed?

Most Hungarians (and foreigners as well who either live in Hungary or have Hungarian acquaintances) are familiar with the scenario where they feel sick and weak and someone advises them to take a shot of pálinka, as that will kill the faulty bacteria or virus. However, 24.hu argues that this is not that helpful, as

it takes time for ethanol to actually disinfect given areas.

Even if you can hold, let’s say vodka or pálinka, inside your mouth for one minute, it will be almost impossible to do the same thing in your throat. This means, that the ethanol inside the consumed alcoholic beverage will not have enough time to work on the bacteria.

Let’s see some exact cases…

The Flu

If you have the flu, then it is your respiratory tracts that are affected and septic, despite them connecting on a small section with the oesophagus. By the time the first symptoms manifest, the pathogens are already in your bloodstream. To destroy them, the alcohol level of your blood would need to be around 70% percent, but

this is impossible, as even a 0.4% percent alcohol level is dangerous.

A simple cold and a sore throat

But what if it’s just a common cold that is taking away your strength? Will pálinka or vodka be good for treating a sore throat? Well, again, the problem of holding it for minutes in your throat arises. Even if you happen to be successful, the virus will likely continue its spreading spree in your nose, and in the parts of your respiratory tracts under your pharynx.

Alcohol will only be helpful in treating a sore throat in the way that it will make you feel less pain, thus it will ease the feeling of soreness. But, as we’ve mentioned previously, ethanol actually takes away water from the cells, drying the tissue that it comes into contact with, making it vulnerable.