One of the things you could possibly do without during the holiday season is the hugs and kisses of extended family. When your great-aunt approaches with outstretched arms and one to three egg liqueurs down your throat, you hold still in God’s name and let the Christmas spirit of charity wash over you. Worst case scenario, you used to have to wipe a little smudged lipstick off your cheek afterwards. At the latest with Corona, however, the awareness of possible infections has increased significantly, even with such fleeting close contact.
But just in time for the festival, there is good news from Spain: Professor Ángel Serrano-Aroca from the University of Valencia has invented a red lipstick that inhibits pathogens. To do this, he blended a lipstick cream base with cranberry extract. He added this mixture to cultures in which viruses, bacteria and fungi grew. Shortly thereafter, all these pathogens were completely inactive. According to Professor Serrano-Aroca’s study, those in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces has been published, it’s the cranberries. They contain micronutrients called polyphenols that prevent pathogens from communicating with each other for reproductive purposes, causing populations to die out.
The new lipstick is already certain as a Christmas present for the great aunt. In addition, cranberries are increasingly being used as a cheaper substitute for cranberries. If you serve cranberries with the roast goose, you can justify this saving with their antibacterial effect.
Read previous episodes of the column here. You can find more good news here.