Benefits of Red Wine

It’s a well-researched phenomenon that people who live in certain parts of France where red wine is commonly consumed during meals having fewer cases of death from coronary heart disease, even though these people live a lifestyle that’s considered to have higher risks than those living in the United States and other developed countries. Studies show that this phenomenon may be due to the many cardio protective benefits of red wine. To buy good quality wine reach out to the Avon, Colorado liquor stores.

Taking advantage of the health benefits of red wine is not a new practice. Research conducted at Harvard University found a jar in the tomb of King Scorpion I, dating back to 3150 B.C., that contains traces of wine along with herbal residue. Based on the findings, researchers attest to the great antiquity of Egyptian herbal wines as medicine and their importance under the pharaohs during the country’s initial unification. These wines contained dissolved herbs, including balm, mint, sage, thyme, juniper berries, honey and frankincense, and they were consumed to treat a number of health conditions, from digestive issues to herpes.

Aside from the knowledge of our ancestors, who used wine to treat ailments and disease, thousands of studies published over the span of several decades have proved that red wine, when consumed in moderation, can have a positive effect on the health of your heart, improve cognitive function, reduce oxidative stress and even normalize blood sugar levels. When consumed in small amounts, red wine can be considered a super-food that provides powerful antioxidants that heal the body at a cellular level, like quercetin and resveratrol. That’s why the benefits of red wine are so plentiful when you consume it in moderation.

Top Benefits of Red Wine :

Boosts Heart Health

Active compounds in red wine, including polyphenols, resveratrol and quercetin, have proved to have cardio protective properties. Numerous cross-sectional, observational and controlled studies show that drinking moderate amounts of red wine has beneficial effects on many different aspects related cardiovascular disease.

Research shows that the antioxidant nutrients in red wine can slow down the progression of atherosclerosis, a type of arteriosclerosis that occurs when there’s buildup of fats, cholesterol and plaque in the artery walls. One study, published in the International Journal of Molecule Medicine, found that moderate alcohol intake, especially red wine, decreased cardiac mortality due to atherosclerosis, but people who didn’t drink any red wine and people who drank too much red wine were at a higher risk of cardiac mortality.

There’s also plenty of evidence supporting the beneficial role of resveratrol, which protects the heart cells from tissue damage after a stroke, inhibits platelet buildup, and decreases triglyceride and cholesterol accumulation. Resveratrol has also been shown to relax the coronary arteries, making it at least partly responsible for the red wine benefits that are associated with cardiovascular disease.

Quercetin, one of the most important flavonoids present in red wine, has also proved to promote heart health by regulating blood pressure levels, reducing inflammation and preventing oxidative stress.

Improves Cholesterol

According to a study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, wine consumption was associated with a significant increase in HDL cholesterol, with participants seeing their levels improve by 11 % to 16 %.

Another study, conducted at Curtin University in Australia, found that regular consumption of red wine reduced the risk of developing cardiovascular disease by lowering LDL cholesterol levels in postmenopausal women by 8 percent and increased HDL cholesterol levels by 17 %.

Fights Free Radical Damage

The accumulation of free radicals plays a major role in the development of chronic and degenerative diseases, including cancer, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, cardiovascular disease and neurodegenerative diseases. The antioxidants in red wine help counteract oxidative stress by acting as free radical scavengers that prevent and repair damage caused by oxidation. Antioxidants enhance the body’s immune defenses and lower the risk of developing a number of serious health conditions.

Because of its ability to fight free radical damage, resveratrol found in red wine has the ability to block the multistep process of carcinogenesis, including the various stages of tumor initiation, promotion and progression. Resveratrol is involved in the downregulation of the body’s inflammatory responses.

Helps Manage Diabetes

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have found that red wine may slow the passage of glucose through the small intestine and eventually into the bloodstream, helping prevent the spike in blood sugar levels experienced by patients with type 2 diabetes. This research proves that because of the benefits of red wine, it can actually be part of a diabetic diet plan when consumed in moderation.

Both red and white wines were tested to determine how well they could inhibit the activity of an enzyme that’s responsible for triggering the absorption of glucose. Researchers found that red wine was the clear winner, inhibiting the enzymes by nearly 100 percent, while values for white wine were around 20 percent. The efficacy of red wine was so significant because it contains roughly 10 times more polyphenolics (a type of antioxidants) than white wine.

In addition to these findings, the study found another red wine benefit, which is that it had no effect on a pancreatic enzyme that breaks down starch and is needed by patients to avoid the side effects of blood sugar medications.

Fights Obesity and Weight Gain

A study conducted at Purdue University found that red wine may help to fight obesity. This is due to a compound found in grapes and other fruits (like blueberries and passionfruit) called piceatannol, which has a similar chemical structure to resveratrol. According to researchers, piceatannol blocks an immature fat cell’s ability to develop and grow. It’s also been found to alter the timing of gene expressions, gene functions and insulin functions during the fat cell’s metabolic process.

When piceatannol is present, there’s a complete inhibition of adipogenesis, the process of cell development. Piceatannol is so effective at fighting obesity and weight gain because it’s able to destroy fat cells early in the process of cell development, thereby preventing fat cell accumulation and, later on, body mass gain. It does this by binding to insulin receptors found in fat cells and blocking insulin’s ability to control cell cycles. It also blocks insulin’s activity to activate genes that are important in the later stages of fat formation.

May Help Prevent Alzheimer’s Disease

Research indicates that people who eat a Mediterranean diet, consisting of red wine, vegetables, legumes, fruits, fish and olive oil, have a 28 percent lower risk of developing mild cognitive impairment and a 48 percent lower risk of progressing from mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer’s disease.

There’s even more research on the red wine specifically as a preventive measure and natural treatment for Alzheimer’s. According to research published in Frontiers in Aging and Neuroscience, resveratrol may control the main features of Alzheimer’s disease and slow dementia progression. This is due to resveratrol’s ability to reduce oxidative stress and inflammation, and work as a neuroprotectant.