Moderate consumption of red wine has been shown to provide health benefits to people who drink one to two 4-oz. glasses a day. Researchers have not yet determined all of the components of wine that confer health benefits, but antioxidants and a low level of alcohol itself are probable contributors. The antioxidant resveratrol is the primary beneficial antioxidant component discovered in red wine, but there are a variety of other antioxidant called flavonoids in the drink that work in synergy with resveratrol.
Improves Heart Health
According to Yale-New Haven Hospital, red wine protects the heart in three different ways. It reduces the levels of LDL cholesterol, the bad cholesterol, that contributes to heart disease while also raising levels of protective HDL cholesterol. Red wine also inhibits blood clotting, helping prevent clots that can clog arteries. Individuals who drink red wine also have a lower mortality rate from heart disease than nondrinkers.
Inhibits Tumor Development
Resveratrol inhibits many different aspects of cancer, according to Drugs.com. Tumor initiation, progression and promotion of tumor genes are all inhibited by this compound. In cultures of human cells, the compound has destroyed colon, breast, prostate and esophageal cancer cells as well as some types of leukemia. A 2003 study funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences implicated yet another component of red wine, procyanidin B dimers, as protective against breast cancer by inhibiting an enzyme called aromatase that is active in this type of cancer.
Neurological Protection
Red wine may have a protective effect against Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and Huntington's disease, slowing the progression of these incurable neurological disorders, explains Drugs.com. While most of the studies done thus far have been on mice and rats, resverastrol and flavonoids in red wine have shown activity against laboratory models of neurodegenerative diseases. Clinical trials in humans are currently underway to verify this activity in a real-world setting.
Fights the Common Cold
A 2002 study from the Harvard School of Public Health, published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, found that individuals who consumed more than 14 glasses of red wine a week experienced a 14 percent reduction in colds than nondrinkers. The study took place in Spain and looked at 4,272 men and women who reported their drinking habits and respiratory infections over a one-year period. While the specific reasons for the association remain unknown, the researchers hypothesize that it may be the result of flavonoids in the wine, which have previously been shown to kill rhinoviruses, a type of virus that can lead to colds.
References
- Yale-New Haven Hospital: A Glass of Red Wine Keeps the Doctor Away
- NutraIngredients: More Health Benefits of Red Wine
- Drugs.com: Complete Wine Information
- Science News: Cabernet Sauvignon Reduces the Risk of Alzheimer's Disease
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences: Breast Cancer Implications of the Suppression of Estrogen Formation by Components of Red Wine and Grape Seeds
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