Smokers, vegetarians at lesser risk of contracting Covid-19: CSIR survey Premium Vegetarians were found to have lower seropositivity indicating that they may be at a lesser risk of getting infected by coronavirus, ( iStock & Thinkstock) . Updated: 18 Jan 2021, 01:22 PM IST PTI The survey also found that those with blood group 'O' may be less susceptible to the infection, while people with 'B' and 'AB' blood groups were at a higher risk Share Via Read Full Story New Delhi: Smokers and vegetarians were found to have lower seropositivity indicating that they may be at a lesser risk of getting infected by coronavirus, according to a pan-India serosurvey conducted by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research in its nearly 40 institutes.