Exchange of views between the immunologist and the director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic of the Genoa Polyclinic. The former has in fact declared that “those who take selfies with a glass must go back to study”, a reference to the latter, who in turn responded by calling her “a know-it-all biologist, who relaunches similar statements only to sell books and have hosts”
Your browser does not support HTML5
The immunologist Antonella Viola and the director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic of the San Martino Polyclinic in Genoa, Matteo Bassetti, had a new hard distance exchange of views. After Covid, the cause of attacks between the two, today the object of the dispute is wine, on which Viola has been carrying out a real crusade for some time to highlight the carcinogenic effects of ethanol. The immunologist’s latest statement on the subject was reported by Republic, where he took issue with doctors and nutritionists who allow exemptions on alcohol: “A nutritionist who says that two glasses of wine are good for you should study. A doctor who takes a selfie with a glass should go to study. Politicians like Salvini have been aggressive against me. Let’s think of the girls who, due to familiarity, have a high risk of cancer, how dare we say that drinking two glasses of wine is not a problem? This is criminal.”
The case
The reference to the doctor who takes “the selfie with the glass” is to Matteo Bassetti, who in the past had taken it and posted it on his social profiles. One way, even then, to respond to my colleague who, in her book, had declared: “It is clear the link between alcohol consumption, and not just abuse, and cancers of the breast, colorectal, liver, to the esophagus, mouth and throat. Women who drink one to two glasses of wine a day have a 27% increased risk of developing breast cancer.” As Viola underlined in the interview with the newspaper, “even the WHO reaffirmed the carcinogenic nature of ethanol” and, in this regard, recalled its diet. “I only drink one glass on special occasions and try to fit in 16 hours of fasting at least 4 times a week. And I feel so fit that I’ve started training again.”
read also
EU, the Regions united against the label that warns about wine
Bassetti’s reply
Bassetti’s response was not long in coming, entrusted to a long post on Facebook with a new photo that sees him with a glass of red wine. “After taking a selfie with a glass of red wine, the science communicator (as she defines herself on Wikipedia) said I have to go back to studying. Today I’m doing it again not because I want to entice anyone to drink alcohol unresponsibly, knowing full well the damage, even carcinogenic, that ethanol can cause. I repeat it because wine, and not other spirits, also has an antioxidant and anti-aging action, scientifically proven, as well as fibrinolytic and antithrombotic. Furthermore, wine is an integral part of our tradition and culture. The invitation is therefore to avoid abuse by drinking wine occasionally and responsibly”. The post does not end here: continuing the director of the Infectious Diseases Clinic of Genoa underlines how “the handyman biologist who plays at being a nutritionist (without having the slightest competence) demonizing wine tout court, studies and says only what interests her for sell books and host TV. Before talking about my curriculum, my studies and my skills, rinse your mouth (perhaps with a good Amarone) and go back to your books. And it is at least as much as the beautician and the make-up / wig “.
