Why red wine is healthier

[Guest guest]

Hi All,

Good to hear by two glasses of red wine a day has some health benefits!!!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health/newsid_1719000/1719675.stm

Why red wine is healthier

Scientists may have discovered the reason why red wine appears to protect the

heart. Numerous studies have suggested

that moderate alcohol drinking helps to reduce the likelihood of heart disease.

The so-called " Mediterranean diet " ,

which includes a larger intake of wine, has been credited with lower rates of

heart disease in those countries, despite

a higher intake of saturated fats. However, there is no clear evidence that red

wine is any better than any other

alcoholic drink.

A team of scientists from Barts and the London School of Medicine, and the Queen

University in London, may have

found a mechanism which points to the benefits of red wine. They say it appears

to interfere with the production of a

body chemical which is vital to the process which clogs up arteries and

increases the risk of a heart attack. That

chemical, a protein called endothelin-1 (ET-1), has already been shown to be

involved in the formation of early signs of

artery disease, such as the formation of fatty streaks on the walls of arteries.

Chemicals which work against it have been shown to reduce the rate of heart

attacks in people who have heart disease.

The London team tested extracts from 23 red wines, four white wines, a rosé wine

and one red non-alcoholic grape juice

sample, after finding that certain chemicals - called polyphenols - from

Cabernet Sauvignon grapes decreased the

manufacture of ET-1 in bovine artery wall cells. They found that, in the red

wines, the amount they inhibited ET-1 ran

parallel with the amount of these polyphenols they contained. The white and

rosé wines had no similar effect.

Dr Corder, from the Harvey Research Institute at St Barts, said:

" What we are proposing is the mechanism

that could explain why red wine is a better alcoholic beverage to consume than

others. If you consume one glass of red

wine and you have a good absorption of the active principle, that would be more

than adequate. "

He said that Cabernet Sauvignon-derived wines seemed to have the most impact.

The study is published in the journal Nature.

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Good Health & Long Life,

Greg , gowatson@...

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