Baja Wine Guide – Baja California Wine Country – Mexico – Vineyards

By John Vogel

I think we have all considered the notion of is red wine really beneficial to our health.  This is something we have all heard in modern myths, but at the same time it’s something we may have found confusing with the different stories we all hear.  To be completely honest I am still a bit confused after reading hundreds of pages and going through numerous case studies.

So in this article I am going to try and put together all of the benefits and risks that I have found in numerous places into one easily understandable article.  There are two things that red wine has been said to help.  One is in heart disease which I will break down all of the benefits and areas that it helps.  The other is in cholesterol which I will explain later.  In the end I will explain the few risks that I have come across when studying the effects of red wine on our bodies.

The first thing I would like to do is explain where this notion came from when saying that red wine can decrease the risks of heart disease.  This notion came during a CBS 60 Minutes Special in 2003.  They were studying the habits of the French since they have a diet high in fat and yet they have a low risk of heart disease.  The reason that seemed unexplainable was pointed out to be the habit of drinking red wine.  This seemed like a shot in the dark, and so researches began to break down the chemicals associated with red wine to see if there really is something beneficial in it.

They found that there is a group of chemicals in red wine which are called procyanadins.  Procyanidins are polyphenols which we know as flavanoids or resveratrol.  Resveratrol is found in the skin and seeds of the grapes.  Resveratrol exhibits the properties of antioxidants by helping to prevent blood clots and stops plaque from forming in arteries.

While these chemicals can be found in grape juice, it is said that the processed grapes in wine have a much higher level.  This has shown to decrease the risk of heart attacks in middle aged people by 30-50%.  So we can see that there is a definite positive which has been proven in lab studies for heart health with the normal consumption of wine.  The normal consumption so we are clear is considered one glass for women, and two glasses for men a day.

Now let’s talk about the positives which have been proven in lab studies with cholesterol.  These same antioxidants resveratrol have been seen to do some positive things with our cholesterol levels.  It has been shown and proven to lower our LDL cholesterol and raise our HDL cholesterol.

It is important to know that we have two forms of cholesterol in our bodies.  The LDL cholesterol is the cholesterol that we all worry about, and the HDL cholesterol is a good form of cholesterol that we all need.  So resveratrol helps up raise the good cholesterol, and lower the bad cholesterol.  This also has some correlation to the benefits in helping prevent heart disease.  It was also shown that high levels of resveratrol increased the lives of lab mice, but this was in extremely high levels.

Unfortunately there are some negatives to drinking wine which have been discussed in the science community.  Wine is an alcohol, and alcohol has been proven to increase the risk of other sicknesses even in moderate forms.  Alcohol has been linked to increasing the risk of breast, pharynx and liver cancer in people who are drinking just one drink a week.

When speaking about this it’s important to realize that genetics play a major role in this.  What is considered moderate and healthy to one person may be considered a risk for another person.

So how do I decide which wine is best for me to help with my cholesterol and lower my risk for heart disease?  Red wine is much higher in resveratrol than white wine.  So the benefits to be found are usually found in red wine.  Some red wines are much higher in levels of resveratrol than others.  Pinot Noir has been shown to have nearly twice the levels of resveratrol than other red wines.  So I would start there.

I hope I have touched base on all of the positives and negatives to drinking wine with the hopes of helping out our health.  Always remember to drink in moderation.  This article was not written so you can use it as an excuse to your families as to why you are drinking too much wine every day.  Moderation as stated above is 1 glass a day for women and 2 glasses a day for men.  So please feel free to raise a glass and drink to our continuing quest for a long and healthy life.