Is Wine Really Good for you

It seems too good to be true. Something which you enjoy and which gives you so much pleasure can actually be GOOD for you?

Actually, up till the 18th century A.D., wine was a major factor in the practice of medicine. Its medical benefits have been known since the Greek physician Hippocrates in the 6th century B.C. It was really only after the rise of the temperance movement in Victorian times that all alcohol, including wine, started to be seen as evil. In some quarters, it still is.

But then people became aware of the ?French Paradox?. The French eat huge amounts of saturated fats, smoke heavily, and exercise hardly at all. Likewise the Americans. Yet the occurrence of heart disease among the French is less than one-third that among Americans. Why the difference?

It has to be wine. The French consume wine on a moderate and regular basis. Especially red wine. Until recently, the American tipple was much more likely to be beer.

Note the words ?moderate? and ?regular?. A consumption of 3-4 glasses of wine a day for men and 1-2 for women (preferably red) could cut your risk of cardiovascular disease by up to 50 percent. The risk is higher both for heavy or binge drinkers AND for total abstainers! This is because the flavonoids in wine, especially red wine, function as anti-oxidants.

As well as the flavonoids, there is another element called resveratrol. This has been shown to:
? boost the immune system;
? block the formation of cancer cells;
? block a specific protein that helps to cause cardio-fibrosis;
? prevent or postpone Alzheimers and other degenerative processes in the brain;
? (possibly) help avoid the risk of stomach ulcers, stroke, and colorectal tumors.

So if wine is such a wonder-drug, shouldn?t we all be knocking it back?

Well, no, there are some people who, sadly, do need to avoid it. If you have stomach ulcers, liver disease, pancreatitis, a urinary infection, or epilepsy, you should not drink wine AT ALL. Also, some people with a tendency to asthma could react adversely to the sulfites in wine.

If you are on other medications, ask your physician. Some medications combine adversely with alcohol, others don?t.

And DON?T use wine as an anti-depressant or a stress-buster! You?ll feel a hundred times worse once the effect wears off.

Lots of medical papers have been written on the benefits of wine. Most of them don?t mention the biggest benefit of all ? it makes you feel good! Wine is one of the great pleasures of life. Don?t think of it as a medicine ? just relax and enjoy it!