Red Wine Consumption and Health: The Truth About One Glass a Day

Is a glass of red wine a day good for you?

If you’re someone who skips the occasional drink thinking you’re protecting your health, you may want to give that notion a second thought. Although there is conflicting research as to whether or not red wine has health benefits, most research supports the notion that moderate drinking is protective to your health. Moderation is the key word. Moderation is defined as one drink per day for women and two for men. A drink is 5 ounces of wine, 12 ounces of beer, or 1.5 ounces of spirits.

What are the health benefits of alcohol consumption?

Research reported in Archives of Internal Medicine shows men who have between a half a drink and two drinks daily, combined with a healthy lifestyle, had a 40 to 60 percent reduced risk of heart attack compared to healthy men who didn’t drink at all. Other research shows moderate alcohol consumption is associated with lower death rates from all causes.

What about weight gain associated with drinking?

According to the Archives of Internal Medicine (2010), “Compared with nondrinkers, initially normal-weight women who consumed a light to moderate amount of alcohol gained less weight and had a lower risk of becoming overweight and/or obese during 12.9 years of follow-up.” Interestingly, the trend toward less weight gain among drinkers doesn’t appear to hold true for men. A 2003 study of British men showed that regular drinkers gained more weight than nondrinkers. Sorry, guys! This could be because men tend to add alcohol calories to their meal whereas women often replace food calories with alcohol calories.

What are the health benefits of red wine and red grapes?

Antioxidants in red wine and red grapes, like the polyphenol called resveratrol, may help protect the lining of blood vessels in your heart. Some research suggests that resveratrol appears to inhibit the development of fat cells and has other anti-obesity properties.

Is there a difference between organic and non-organic red wine?

Many wine drinkers don’t think about the fact that the grapes used to make their wine might be sprayed with the same pesticides, herbicides and antifungals as the grapes they eat. Therefore, clean eaters may want to drink organic red wine, which is made from 100% certified organically grown grapes.

What are the detriments of drinking?

Too much alcohol may increase the risk of other health problems such as liver disease and some cancers. Some research shows a slightly increased risk of breast cancer for women, even with moderate drinking. However, the Journal of Women’s Health (2012) concluded “red wine does not appear to increase the risk of breast cancer.” Always consider your family history of cancer and alcohol abuse when deciding whether you should have that glass of wine (or two for men) each day.