The findings from two independent studies indicate that people with blood type O are less likely to catch Covid-19 than individuals with blood types A, B and AB

People with blood type O are less likely to catch Covid-19, according to new research.

Their risk of severe complications such as organ failure – and even death – is also reduced, say scientists.

But individuals with blood types A and AB are most vulnerable, suggest the findings.

The findings from two independent studies shed fresh light on why the virus is deadly for some – while others are not even aware they have had it.

One team compared Danish health registry data of over 473,000 individuals tested for Covid-19 to a control group of more than 2.2 million from the general population.

There were fewer positive results among those with blood type O – the most common – and more in peers with A, B and AB. Rates of infection were similar in these three groups.

The trends remained after the researchers took into account ethnicity which affects blood group distributions