Benefits of Drinking Red Wine

Before reading this piece, go ahead and raise a toast to red wine and thank the Good Lord for infusing red grape skin with resveratrol.

But, don’t overdo it, because more than 2 glasses of wine a day can harm your health.Red Wine is Packed Full of Antioxidants - The Major one being called Resveratrol...

Now, let’s get down to the benefits of red wine, which are:

Disease-fighting and anti-aging abilities

Look at the French. They eat a very high fat diet and yet lead a very healthy lifestyle. France, among all wealthy nations has the least number of obese people. People in France lead long lives. In fact a study on this phenomenon, entitled The French Paradox, states that all this is because the French drink red wine, which is loaded with resveratrol.

Reducing the evil effects of smoking

Smoking stresses up the blood vessels and drinking red wine reduces this stress. When vessels are stressed, they lose their natural ability to relax. Red wine undoes this stress.

Guards against heart disease

Red wine contains good old resveratrol, which is known to fight heart disease. 100s of experiments on mice and lemurs have conclusively displayed the heart-friendly properties of resveratrol. Another general study on red wine has established that drinking it helps in reducing LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein), the bad cholesterol, and boosting HDL (high Density Lipoprotein), the good cholesterol. It is a known fact that high LDL and low HDL levels cause heart disease.

It has anticlotting properties

Drinking red wine helps lower the level of fibrinogen. Fibrinogen is a protein that actively participates in blot clot formation, which as you know, can lead to heart attacks.

It fights off atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is the hardening of arteries. Typically, arteries start firming up when they lose their “relaxing” ability. The polyphenols contained in red wine, including resveratrol, helps the blood vessels relax. It has been established that red wine promotes the formation of Nitric Oxide (NO), which in turn helps relax the blood vessels.

It lowers blood pressure

Red wine is anti-hypertensive. Now, there’s nothing in red wine that lowers blood pressure but it has been The Power of Antioxidants... observed that 1-2 glasses of red wine (5 ounces each, and no more) taken along with meals help relax people. This can well be a placebo effect, but the fact is that it does lower blood pressure.

It busts kidney stones

Some doctors say that red wine stops kidney stones from forming. This can be an old wives’ tale, but there may be something to it.

It is neuro protective

We’re back to resveratrol now. Some researchers say that the resveratrol in red wine is neuro protective and hence, red wine can lower the risk of neurological disorders like Alzheimer’s disease. It is even interesting to note that resveratrol at moderate doses is collagen protective - perhaps as it supports overall vitality of the circulatory system.

These are the benefits of drinking red wine. Most benefits of red wine are associated with resveratrol, the magical compound found in the skin of red grapes.

This does not mean that you should head for the cellar to hit the bottle. Drinking red wine is good for the body so long you consume no more than 1-2 glasses per day. Medical professionals say that ideally, women must consume 5 ounces of wine per day and men can have up to 10 ounces daily. Any more red wine than this dose may prove to be counterproductive.

Know that if you are affected by any medical condition and have high triglyceride levels, then you must check with a medical professional before drinking any form of alcohol.