Is wine a Healthy drink
Wine can contain over 1000 different chemical constituents, making it a very complex solution, generally consisting of 85-90% water, 10-14% alcoh ol and 1-5% phenolics. Over time wine became know n as a medicine. (1). I t was a more hygienic drink than the water of the day. It was not until modern time s that full scale studies were done to answer the question of why people living in France, Portugal and Italy did not have th e same mortality rate as the US, Canada an d Scandinavian Countries. Many researchers concluded that it was due to wine consumption in France , Portugal and Italy that causes v ascular disease to be comparatively rare.
Alcohol helps the blood flow more easily around the body , and regular intake of wine reduces the level of harmful cholesterol.(1) Now alcohol is on ly a small part of the story, s cientific studies have shown not all alcoholic drinks have the same positive effect. Please remember that more is not better for you. Too much alcohol can be harmful; you should drink with a responsible attitude.
What Makes Wine So Beneficial
It is the phenolics found in the grape. A phenolic compound in wine can be defined as one that is derived naturally from plant or microbial origin, consisting of a phenyl ring backbone with many substitutive possibilities. Some phenolics like coumaric, caffeic, ferulic and vanillic acids are relatively simple while others are more complex polymeric structures such as the tannins, which contribute strongly to the mouth feel, quality and palatability of red wines. Phenolic compounds are commonly found in animal, plant and microbial tissues and contribute to defensive strategies as many are involved in plant protection as biologically active growth inhibitors of other living systems. In addition, they contribute to color and flavor of food items including wine . Since many have strong antioxidant activities, they also play important beneficial roles in mammalian systems. Red wine consumption has beenclearly linked to reduced incidence of atherosclerosis and heart disease in humans, most likely due to the presence of numerous bioactive phenolic compounds in red wine products.
These compounds have a protective effect on the capillaries and on the collagen in the walls of the blood vessels. They hinder the aggregation of platelets and thus prevents the formation of clots. Phenolics also have powerful antioxidant properties, which inhibit degradation of the cell walls both in coronary arteries and in the brain. There is also the thought that wine may be beneficial in the treatment of cancer and Alzheimer's disease.(1) The majority of Phenolics in the grape are found in the seed and skin. The skin of the grape plays a greater role in the production of red wine than white wine.
A little is good for you
People of southern Europe eat far more fruits and vegetables and less red meats than North Americans, their overall diet is healthier than ours. Enjoying your wine in moderation and with a responsible attitude can contribute to a long and healthy life. A little goes along way.
While heart disease reduction and other health-related findings are applicable to all beverages containing alcohol, some research has found advantages specifically for wine drinkers. In a landmark Danish study published in 1995, researchers for the Copenhagen City Heart Study found wine drinkers to have clear health advantages over nondrinkers or moderate drinkers of other beverages. "Our finding, that only wine drinking clearly reduces both the risk of dying from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease and the risk of dying from other causes," wrote Morten Gronbaek and colleagues in the British Medical Journal, "suggest that other more broadly acting factors in wine may be present."
Dr Jean-Paul Brouster of France says cabernet sauvignon is the healthiest. He refers to the cabernet sauvignon of Bordeaux as containing the highest concentration of resveratrol and quercitin which are beneficial to the heart.
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Resveratrol,
the compound (?) in red wine that keeps your blood platlettes 'slippery' and keeps those old arteries
from clogging up, is found to be most prominent in Pinot Noir. Not only in Pinot Noir,
BUT Ontario Pinot Noir!
Linda Bramble
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Finding, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry , contributes to the growing body of research that suggests moderate red wine consumption may help prevent a number of diseases, including age-related dementias , heart disease , and cancer . The researchers, led by neurobiologists Philippe Marambaud and Peter Davies , say their study also identifies a previously unknown chemical pathway that may one day be tapped to design new drugs to fight Alzheimer's disease
Canadian red wines may actually be naturally healthful. According to wine writer Natalie MacLean, cool-climate wines contain slightly higher levels of resveratrol, an antioxidant believed to help prevent cancer and cardiovascular disease.
May I suggest that now is a good time to take a trip to your local wine store and purchase a fine bottle of Canadian wine. A glass or two with dinner could improve your health, it may even prolong your life.
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"I have enjoyed great health at a great age because everyday since I can remember I have consumed a bottle of wine except when I have not felt well. Then I have consumed two bottles."
-A Bishop of Seville
"In Europe we thought of wine as something as healthy and normal as food and also a great giver of happiness and well being and delight. Drinking wine was not a snobbism nor a sign of sophistication nor a cult; it was as natural as eating and to me as necessary."
-Ernest Hemingway, "A Moveable Feast"
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Red Wine Halves Prostate Cancer Risk
Research by Janet L. Stanford at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centre states “We found that men who consumed four or more glasses of red wine per week reduced their risk of prostate cancer by 50 percent. Among men who consumed four or more 4 ounce glasses of red wine per week, we saw about a 60 percent lower incidence of the more aggressive types of prostate cancer. The more clinically aggressive prostate cancer is where the strongest reduction in risk was observed," Stanford said.
News Report September 2007
I n the last 10 years, thousands of research on red wine showed that moderate intake of this drink improves cardiovascular health. The cardio protective effect has been attributed to antioxidants present in the skin and seeds of red grapes
Based on the research experts advise that the antioxidants, called flavonoids, reduce the risk of coronary heart disease in three ways: by reducing production of low density lipoprotein (the "bad" cholesterol), by boosting high density lipoprotein ( HDL ) cholesterol (the good cholesterol) and by reducing blood clotting.
Furthermore researchers have found that moderate red wine consumption may be beneficial to more than just your heart. One study found that the antioxidant resveratrol, may inhibit tumor development in some cancers. Another study indicated that resveratrol aided in the formation of nerve cells, which experts believe may be helpful in the treatment of neurological diseases like Alzheimers and Parkinsons.
The most recent studies on red wine presented at the American Association for Dental Research (AADR) annual meeting, in Orlando , Florida by the show that Red wine polyphenols may help fight gum disease. V. Houde, M. Boisvert and their colleagues from University
Laval in Canada investigated the role of polyphenols. Including those from red wine, in scavenging free radicals released by immune cells stimulated with components of bacteria causing periodontal diseases. Free radicals are believed to be at least partly responsible for the development of gum disease and are generated by immune cells during periodontitis. In order to have healthy gums it is important to that free radicals are maintained at low levels. Their results indicated that red wine polyphenols significantly modulate several inflammatory components released by macrophages (a population of host immune cells) in response to bacterial stimuli.
There are also studies that show that wine drinkers have the lowest incidence of colon cancer, only 1% as against eighteen percent of beer drinkers and twelve percent in non-drinkers
Longer Life
CTV .ca News Staff
An ingredient found in some red wines may help extend the human lifespan, a new study says. The study, which was published in Plos One , an online science journal, dosed mice with a low dose of resveratrol, which is found in the skins of some grapes, and said that the ingredient "may retard some aspects of aging."
Similar studies on the ingredient have been performed in the past with mice, including one study that turned regular mice into atheletic super-mice, by introducing resveratrol. However, scientists were using doses that far exceeded the miniscule amount found in a typical glass of red wine. Some scientists have estimated that a person would have to drink 100 bottles a day to translate the results from mice to humans -- which may prove difficult for your average wine connoisseur.
A number of pharmaceutical companies are already researching the ingredient, hoping to have a capsule available for human consumption in the near future. “I used to think it was probably a hundred years in the future that we'd see these anti-aging drugs come around," Dr. David Sinclair, a Harvard professor said. "But now I'm optimistic that we'll see these possibly in the next few years."
Analysts say that the first company to get the drug on the market could be in for windfall profits.
An ingredient found in some red wines may help extend the human lifespan, a new study says.
The study, which was published in Plos One , an online science journal, dosed mice with a low dose of resveratrol, which is found in the skins of some grapes, and said that the ingredient "may retard some aspects of aging."
Similar studies on the ingredient have been performed in the past with mice, including one study that turned regular mice into atheletic super-mice, by introducing resveratrol.
However, scientists were using doses that far exceeded the miniscule amount found in a typical glass of red wine. Some scientists have estimated that a person would have to drink 100 bottles a day to translate the results from mice to humans -- which may prove difficult for your average wine connoisseur.
A number of pharmaceutical companies are already researching the ingredient, hoping to have a capsule available for human consumption in the near future.
"I used to think it was probably a hundred years in the future that we'd see these anti-aging drugs come around," Dr. David Sinclair, a Harvard professor said. "But now I'm optimistic that we'll see these possibly in the next few years."
Analysts say that the first company to get the drug on the market could be in for windfall profits.
The Heart
WASHINGTON - A natural compound found in red wine may protect the heart against the effects of the aging process, researchers said on Tuesday.
In their study, mice were given a diet supplemented with the compound known as resveratrol starting at their equivalent of middle age until old age. These mice experienced changes in their gene activity related to aging in a way very similar to mice that were placed on a so-called calorie restriction diet that slows the aging process by greatly cutting dietary energy intake.
Most striking was how the resveratrol, like calorie restriction, blocked the decline in heart function typically associated with aging, according to Tomas Prolla, a University of Wisconsin professor of genetics who helped lead the study.
Scientists seek fountain of youth
Much as Spaniard Juan Ponce de Leon once searched for the mythical fountain of youth, researchers now are seeking ways to extend the quality and length of human life.
In some studies, animals given a diet with greatly reduced caloric intake have lived longer than animals with normal diets. But perpetual hunger is a steep price to pay for greater longevity, some researchers say.
Resveratrol, found in abundance in grapes and in red wine, has drawn a lot of interest from scientists and some companies, including GlaxoSmithKline, which in April said it would pay $720 million to buy Sirtris Pharmaceuticals Inc, a company that is developing drugs that mimic the effects of resveratrol.
Some studies have shown that in high doses, resveratrol extended the life span of fruit flies and worms and prevented early death in mice fed a high-fat diet.
In this study, mice were given relatively low doses compared to the earlier research, and still experienced important aging-related benefits, the researchers said.
The researchers began giving the resveratrol diet to the mice when they were 14 months old — their middle age — and followed the animals until they were about 30 months old. The researchers then conducted tests on cardiac function and on gene activity related to aging.
“Resveratrol at low doses can retard some aspects of the aging process, including heart aging, and it may do so by mimicking some of the effects of caloric restriction, which is known to retard aging in several tissues and extend life span,” added Prolla, whose study was published in the scientific journal PLoS ONE.
Using a method that permits simultaneous analysis of thousands of genes at the same time, the researchers found a huge overlap in the genes whose activity were changed by resveratrol and caloric restriction.
They looked at the heart, brain and muscles, and said that the effect of resveratrol was strongest in the heart but did prevent some aging-related changes in the other tissues.
For more on your heart
1. Wine By Andre Domine,publisher Konemann 5th edition
