French research has found that among corona infections there is a low percentage of smokers who also suffer from symptoms • China has confirmed the findings • But smoking is still dangerous, even in Corona

Nicotine prevents the corona virus from binding to human cells, thus reducing the disease's severity - according to a study by doctors in France. The results of the study brought the health system in France to an unusual trial: snap up nicotine stickers that are used as a remedy for smoking cessation, medical staff to find out if there are fewer infections, and for mild or moderate coronary patients. 

Reporter: Dana Pan Luzon // Photo: Gil Kramer // Edit: Sivan Schuster, Eden Barel

Researchers emphasize that smoking is not intended to prevent coronary disease, since cigarette harmful substances (other than nicotine) severely impair health, and smokers are at additional risk if they start corona. The study, as mentioned, will focus on nicotine itself. 

A total of 482 coronary patients in France were studied in this study. It turned out that among older patients over 65, only 4.4 percent were smokers, and among the lower ages, on average 44 years, only 5.3 percent were smokers. This is a very low and surprising amount of corona smokers, as in France about 25% of the population smokes. After the study was published, doctors in France contacted Chinese doctors from hospitals in Wuhan, and said that data from hospitals in China also revealed that smokers were less likely to become infected and to develop fewer severe symptoms.

Researchers believe that nicotine, the active ingredient in tobacco, may prevent the corona virus's connection to human cells, or at least mitigate the acute effect of the virus on it. However, participants in the experiment should be careful: do not become addicted to nicotine and start smoking.