What are the 6 health benefits of red wine?
- Wine and the heart
- Wine and longevity
- Wine and diabetes
- Wine and cognitive abilities
- Wine and cancer
- The tricky ingredient
I somehow believe that wine is like religion! How? Well, you have both of them in your life to give you a better feeling. It is true, one of them is material, in the form of a drink and you can touch it, feel it, and drink it; while the other one is completely spiritual, intangible, and in the form of a set of rules. But you have to admit that both have a part in them that was created to help you have a smoother life. Well, in case you are thinking, yes, a lot of other things are like this too; we have them in our lives because they give us a better feeling, namely sports, some superstitious beliefs, music, art, or even love! They all have that ‘smooth’ element in them, but with different degrees.
However, you have to admit that there are certain phenomena in our lives that are more spiritual than others and I’m talking about those. Wine is a good example and it’s more suitable for my simile. There is an aura of spirituality around it, it is historical, and it has even accompanied religion in many stages of history. So yes, wine is a lot like religion.
Now, what good is this analogy? Well, do you ever try to prove your religion is healthy? Do you ever take the trouble to do extensive research just to prove that your religion’s rules are backed by science? The answers to these questions must actually be a flat ‘no’! Your religion is a personal spiritual belief you have and share with other members of the same religion to give meaning to your life; it is not something to be exposed by science. Science may disprove many of its principles. And if your answer is a ‘yes’, then be ready to shed doubt on many principles of your religion and lead a dubious life afterwards. Why would you do that?
On the other hand, we all know that there ARE people who constantly do that and they are frustrated each time they try to do so. Why they want to show that empirical science should prove their prayers have some wavelength that matches some frequency of the universe’s electromagnetic pulses beats me. But they do it, and sometimes they have some breakthroughs as well; however, in most cases, and as far as I know, they usually make a fool of themselves by doing so. Religion is religion because it offers explanations for the unexplained, it is an answer to mysteries that have always puzzled humans; it is on the other side of the field versus science and it is not supposed to make amends with it. Besides, no one, not even science, has ever claimed that they have all the answers to fundamental questions and that’s why a lot of these questions are left for the religion to answer. Therefore, religion will stay religion if untouched!
Similarly, a lot about wine is spiritual and psychological; we have it in our lives so we can feel better. It is an excuse to get together and have fun. It is our companion during our moments of solitude and reflection. Unsurprisingly, maybe that’s why a lot of religious rituals have always been accompanied by wine too.
With this introduction, you might have realized why I have compared these two together; that is, religion and wine; even in the wine world, there are people who are always trying to prove the scientifically-proved health benefits of wine! Yes, there is nothing wrong with it; but still, why would you want to know the health benefits of wine? Would we avoid it if we found out there were many harms? I wouldn’t, for sure! I drink wine, not because of its physical health benefits, but mostly because of its MENTAL health benefits, because it gives me a good feeling, because it is a group-friendly drink, because it is an excuse to get together with friends, and well, if there are some health benefits, that is the silver lining of liquor-drinking. This is how I think and I am pretty sure many wine-drinkers feel the same way.
Well, the debate aside, fortunately, there ARE health benefits to this divine and usually red drink and we are going to talk about them while I drink my Nik Pegasus red wine!
6 health benefits of red wine
Before beginning to discuss something that I would consider a bonus to the wine-drinking world, let me define some biological and health terms that the benefits of wine will subsequently refer to.
LDL and HDL: everyone is almost familiar with cholesterol. We know cholesterol as being something dangerous in the body. However, in fact, there is bad cholesterol and there is a good one. The one that we all blame for the heart attacks is the LDL (low-density lipoprotein). Higher amounts of LDL in the blood can form plaque on the walls of your blood vessels and eventually lead to a stroke. On the other hand, there is another type of cholesterol called HDL (high-density lipoprotein), which absorbs the cholesterol and carries it back to the liver, which will in turn flush it out of the body. Higher levels of HDL can lower the risk of heart disease and a stroke.
The good news is here though; containing compounds called phenols, which contain tannins, red wine can help lower LDL cholesterol and therefore decrease the risk of heart disease and strokes. Another compound found abundantly in red wine, resveratrol also helps decrease the amount of LDL and increase HDL in the blood, which is also a good sign for the heart. Resveratrol is also said to prevent the formation of blood clots in the vessels and therefore lower the risk of heart disease. In this way, it can be said that red wine can help blood circulation and regulate your blood pressure as well.
Resveratrol is a compound mostly found in the skin of grapes and it has a lot of health benefits. Since the process of fermentation with the grape skin is longer in making red wine, this type of wine is found to contain a lot more of this substance than other varieties of wine.
Free radicals: the body is constantly under oxidative attacks. Oxygen in the body is broken into single atoms and loses its electrons leaving them unpaired. These electrons, called radicals, travel through the body seeking other electrons to pair with. This scavenging can cause damage to health. Studies show that these free radicals are to blame for many types of cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and many other types of diseases. Free radicals can also be the cause of hair loss and skin damage.
The bright side of the story is that the good old red wine contains antioxidants that can attack free radicals and stressors in the body and hence prevent many adverse effects of these stressors. This is why many studies indicate the relationship between red wine and long life. Free radicals are the cause of aging and the substances prevalent in red wine can inhibit their negative effects in the body and thus prolong your life.
Of course, don’t forget that all these studies in favor of red wine consider moderate drinking of wine and not excessive amounts. Therefore, try to drink moderately, maybe around one or two glasses every evening, and you will benefit from the advantages of red wine.
Insulin is a natural useful hormone secreted by the pancreas in the body and it regulates blood sugar by allowing glucose to enter the body’s cells in order to provide energy. The body’s sensitivity to insulin is very important in order for glucose to be consumed and prevent diabetes.
Research has proved that red wine could have an inhibiting effect on developing type 2 Diabetes. In fact, what wine does is improve the body’s sensitivity to insulin and therefore prevent type 2 diabetes.
As mentioned before, free radicals in the blood can cause a lot of damage and a lot of this damage could be to the brain, causing cognitive abilities to diminish. Studies have indicated that chemicals in red wine can attack free radicals and therefore reduce their adverse effects. The free radicals can be the cause of some cognitive malfunctions such as dementia, neurodegeneration, and other diseases such as Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s.
As mentioned earlier, resveratrol, which is abundant in red wine, has numerous health benefits. It is suggested in some studies that this substance can help fight against cancerous cells as well; combining this with the fact that there are antioxidants in red wine fighting free radicals, it can be concluded that red wine can be an inhibiting factor against cancer.
A study conducted at Harvard Medical School found that red wine can be one of the factors preventing men from developing prostate cancer. This study also concluded that red wine can prevent colon and breast cancer.
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The tricky ingredient
Something usually neglected when talking about the health benefits of wine is one of the infamous ingredients that has turned it into an alcoholic drink, that is, the alcohol itself. Studies have shown that moderate amounts of alcohol can have health benefits, whether it comes from wine or any other type of liquor. It is suggested that a little amount of regular alcohol can raise levels of HDL cholesterol and reduce the formation of blood clots, which will have some benefit for blood circulation in the body and help prevent artery damage and thus prevent cardiovascular disease. However, it must be noted that according to the literature, it is still unclear how alcohol can help the heart and more research is needed to prove it.
It is also possible that a little amount of alcohol might improve the function of the layer cells that line blood vessels.
Caution; alcohol is a highly addictive substance and if consumed more than necessary, it could have severe adverse effects on your general health. Alcohol can also worsen the conditions of other diseases if consumed incautiously; therefore, for any amount of consumption, consult your physician first.
Stay cautious, stay healthy!
A word of note here is that all the benefits of red wine in fact come from the substances inside it, resveratrol being one of the most important ones. Here it must be mentioned that such a substance can be provided for the body through the literal consumption of fruits or other sources that have such a substance. In fact, this means that you don’t have to get this substance only from an alcoholic drink. This also means that you can directly get resveratrol from grapes with red or purple skin or from the grape juice as well. There are also resveratrol supplements in the market and they are medically approved. Therefore, if you are a non-drinker, it is not advised that you start drinking red wine just for the health benefits. All these facts are for wine-drinkers and to remind them that there is a bonus to drinking red wine; otherwise, there is plenty of health-benefiting food and fruits in the market that could boost your health.
Another word of caution is about moderation again. Always remember that all the health benefits listed everywhere about red wine work if only you drink in moderation, and moderation according to science is around 4 to 7 glasses per week; besides, a ‘scientific’ glass contains around 5 ounces of drink.
So moderation in everything!
Anyways, the next time you order a Nik Pegasus Cabernet Sauvignon, remember that you are doing your body a favor as well.
Back to wine and religion
Back to our discussion at the beginning; all the health benefits that were mentioned here are, in my opinion, a bonus that could create a silver lining in your wine-drinking experience; otherwise, wine is a religion for the wine-drinker and its benefits do not need to be supported by other scientific evidence. Of course, a wine connoisseur will definitely know how much to drink to enjoy the advantages.
