Wine is probably the most romantic beverage you could ever serve your significant other not because of its scent or taste but because of the health benefits it can provide. In fact, several studies revealed that the red variety of wine have been found to lengthen a person’s lifespan. Aside from that, it has also been discovered to have anti-cancer effects and help promote mental and cardiovascular health which can greatly decrease mortalities related to these medical conditions.
However, too much of anything can be bad and this does not exempt wine drinking especially since it still has alcohol contents that can be detrimental to one’s health if consumed too much. In fact, the US Department of Agriculture’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 revealed that “moderation” in alcohol drinking should be limited to just “one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men.”
Meanwhile, the UK’s National Health Service advises men to drink no more than 3 to 4 units of alcohol per day while women are limited to 2 to 3 units. For those who do not know their units, one unit of alcohol is equivalent to 10 milliliters or 8 grams of pure alcohol, which means a large glass (250ml) of red wine contains 3 units of alcohol while a medium glass (175ml) is pegged at two units.
Once you are able to follow this, you may enjoy the following health benefits of drinking red wine:
- Lowered Risk of Depression. According to a study conducted by Spanish scientists, men and women who had between two to seven glasses of red wine every week reported less cases of depression. Even after considering all other factors that can affect their health such as their individual lifestyles, the effect of red wine still stood out.
- Anti-Aging. Experts from the Harvard Medical School found out that red wine contains resveratrol, a compound from the skins of red grapes, has been discovered to have anti-aging properties. Researchers are convinced that the resveratrol can also lengthen a person’s life span because of the “compelling proof” that links the compound’s anti-aging properties to the SIRT1 gene.
- Reduced Risk of Heart Attacks. Those who are suffering from high blood pressure are advised to make a habit of moderately drinking red wine as it has been found to decrease the risk of experiencing heart attacks by 30 percent compared to those who are non-drinkers. At the same time, it also contains procyanidins that shield a person from acquiring heart diseases.
- Colon Cancer Prevention. A 2005 study published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology revealed that moderate drinking of wine, especially the red variety, can reduce the risk of colon cancer by as much as 45 percent.
- Promote Healthy Brain. Drinking wine moderately promotes healthier brain as it prevents detrimental conditions like dementia and slows the decline of brain function. According to studies, the high levels of resveratrol in red wines help reduce the thickness of blood platelets to maintain the regular flow of blood to and from the brain. “We don’t recommend that nondrinkers start drinking. But moderate drinking, if it is truly moderate, can be beneficial,” explained Professor Edward J. Neafsey, lead researcher of the study published in The Journal of Neuropsychiatric Disease and Treatment, citing that drinking red wine experience 23 percent lower risks of dementia.
- Type 2 Diabetes Prevention. While some may describe red wine as “sweet,” it doesn’t actually contain too much sugar that can result to Type 2 Diabetes. In fact, experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences conducted an animal testing that revealed how the resveratrol in red wine can help improve the body’s sensitivity to insulin, thereby reducing the risk of diabetes.
So if you want to give your husband or wife something close to “forever,” you should probably give him or her regular drinks of red wine, but keep it in moderation
