|
The articles are published to provide
information, not medical advice. Please
consult your physician if you have any
concerns or questions.
"Nothing more excellent
or valuable than wine was ever granted
by the Gods to man." By
Plato
Research have shown that moderate red
wine consumption may help protect against
certain cancers and heart disease, and
can have a positive effect on cholesterol
levels and blood pressure.
The key to reaping the health benefits
of red wine seems to be moderate consumption.
Drinking one glass a day for women and
up to two glasses a day for men may decrease
the risk of heart disease, cancer and
stroke. Excessive or binge drinking, however,
doesn't produce the same benefits. In
other words, when it comes to red wine:
more is not better.
Unlike white wines, red wines contain
higher concentrations of polyphenol
antioxidants such as resveratrol, quercetin
and epicatechin, all of which protect
against cell damage caused by free radicals.
White wines, by comparison, have a low-antioxidant
content. The reason why white wines
contain fewer polyphenols is all down
to the wine production process. With
white wines, the skins are removed immediately
after crushing - and with them go most
of the healthy compounds retained in
red wines.
Interestingly, the polyphenols contained
in red wine, according to researchers,
are potentially more effective antioxidants
than either vitamins C or E. Consumed
in moderation, red wines produced from
grape varieties rich in polyphenol antioxidants,
may help protect against the following
conditions:
Source: Yale University 30 Mar 2005
New Haven, Conn. - A review article of
the latest studies looking at red wine
and cardiovascular health shows drinking
two to three glasses of red wine daily
is good for the heart, according to a
Yale School of Medicine researcher in
the Journal of American College of Surgeons.
Studies comparing spirits, beer and wine
show some benefit from spirits and beer,
but an overwhelming benefit from drinking
red wine.
Source: American Chemical Society 9
Sep 2003
NEW YORK, Sept. 8 - Scientists have
known for some time that red wine is
healthy for the heart. Now, they have
found evidence that provides yet another
explanation for this effect. Scientists
at the University of California, Davis,
have identified another group of chemicals
in red wine that is linked to the ability
to lower cholesterol
Read
more
Source: British Medical Journal 22 Feb
2005
Drinking wine, but not beer or spirits,
keeps women's hearts beating healthily
finds research in Heart. The Swedish
research team studied 102 women under
the age of 75, all of whom had survived
a heart attack or heart surgery for
blocked arteries.
Read
more
Another health benefit has been attributed
to red wine - fighting off the common
cold. According to scientists in Spain,
drinking wine, especially red, stops
people from developing colds. Experts
at five universities found that people
who drank more than two glasses of red
wine a day had 44% fewer colds than
teetotallers. Drinking one glass of
red wine a day also protected against
colds, but to a lesser extent.
Read
more
According to a study published in The
Lancet, drinking red wine in moderation
reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer's
disease and dementia in older people.
Research suggests that moderate consumption
of red wine may help reduce the risk
of stroke by approximately twenty percent.
Animal trials indicate that the antioxidant,
resveratrol, may have an anti-inflammatory
effect on the various stages of cancer
development.
Research to establish whether red wine
consumption protects the immune system
is still in its infancy, but results
to date are encouraging. One study involving
rats suggested that red wine intake,
with its high antioxidant content, might
help to protect and strengthen the immune
system.
Several studies have identified that
one to two glasses of red wine, rich
in antioxidants, may inhibit the formation
of free radicals. This in turn helps
to slow down the progression of certain
cancers including leukemia, prostate
cancer, colon cancer, skin cancer (melanoma)
and breast cancer.
Above credits and sources: www.red-wine-and-health.com
The French eat 30% more fat than Americans
but suffer 40% fewer heart attacks.
The evidence that the French consumption
of red wine with their meals countermands
the fattier diet seems compelling in
light of subsequent research. The largest
study, the Copenhagen City Heart Study,
which monitored 13,000 men and women
aged 30 to 70 between 1976 and 1988,
found compelling evidence of the connection
between moderate wine consumption and
a sharp reduction in human mortality
rates. This study found that daily wine
consumers have literally half the risk
of dying at any given age when compared
to those who never drink wine.
Back
to Top
|
