French toxicologist has warned people staying at home not to #drink too much alcohol, as #France continues into its second week of coronavirus confinement.
Friday (March 27) marked the 11th day of lockdown for France’s 67 million inhabitants, as the country battles the spread of the coronavirus that has already infected more than 29,000 and killed nearly 1,700.
Supermarkets where people can buy wine, beer and other forms of alcohol remain open – a relief for some who have seen boredom set in.
“We have to keep ourselves busy a bit. We have to find something to occupy our time,” Parisian shopper Jean-Marc Debuc said as he inspected a store’s wine aisle on Friday.
But toxicologist Christian Andreo, the director of association ADIXIO, which helps employees in companies fight addition, said while statistics are not yet available, anecdotal evidence suggests that people who are spending more time at home are drinking more.
He advises those confined to alternate drinking alcoholic beverages with water and other non-alcoholic drinks to keep the risk of over-consumption at bay.
France has one of the highest alcohol consumption rates in Europe, with the country trailing behind only Estonia, Lithuania and the Czech Republic in terms of consumption volume in 2019, according to the World Health Organization.
Alcohol is the second-biggest cause for preventable deaths in Franceafter tobacco, killing some 41,000 people each year, according to government data released in 2019.
Meanwhile
The #EiffelTower, one of Paris’ most recognised landmarks, lit up for 10 minutes on Saturday (March 27) in tribute to medical staff tending to those suffering from the coronavirus.
The iconic tower glittered with array of lights during the display and carried a simple message of thanks.
France has been one of the countries hit hardest by the disease in Europe, and is currently on lockdown with citizens fined if they don’t have good reason to be out of their houses.
French (March 26) taking the total to 1,995, as the government has decided to extend by two weeks the national lockdown, now due to end on April 15 at the earliest.