Gwyneth Paltrow cut back on alcohol after battling Covid-19

Gwyneth Paltrow has cut down on her drinking after contracting Covid-19.

In a recent interview, the 49-year-old actress explained that she "started feeling so good" after her doctor advised her to stop drinking to recover from the virus.

"It's been a long year of barely any alcohol, I mean I've had a sip here and there but very rarely," she told comedian Chelsea Handler on her podcast Dear Chelsea. "You know me, I love a drink, I love the ritual of it, and I love to sit down and have one and chat. I love the taste of alcohol, like, I love whiskey and wine and, whatever, vodka. I'll take it all... having had long Covid stuff for a while, I just didn't feel vibrant."

In February, Paltrow revealed that she and her husband Brad Falchuk had contracted the virus "early on" in the pandemic. To cope with long term side effects, she visited a functional medicine practitioner, who put her on a diet that cut out alcohol and sugar.

"I didn't feel good, and I had really high inflammation levels and the doctor was like, 'Look, you really need to clean up your act," the Goop founder recalled. "You gotta, at least for three months, no alcohol, no grains, no sugar, nothing processed,' everything like that."

Paltrow explained that after following the doctor's advice, she began to feel "so good," but doesn't think she will cut out alcohol permanently. "I'm not going to do it forever, but I think 2021 has been about me trying to value my health and wellness a little bit more because, especially during COVID, I was just eating whatever, drinking seven nights a week. And it's been really interesting. I sleep so much better with no alcohol, it's wild."