alternatehistory.com

I was reading an article from 2010 in Wired about evidence the Nubians may have been making a sort of "beer" (described as a "sour, porridge like substance" in the article) that functioned as an antibiotic. I have to admit to not being any sort of expert in this area. Could this have been developed elsewhere? Is there any chance that the development of something equivalent could have mitigated any major epidemics, like the Black Death or the cholera outbreaks of the 19th century?
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