The Doctor Is In: Is Red Wine Healthy?
Our "resident doctor" explores the facts regarding the beneficial and detrimental effects of alcohol in the first installment of a regular PJM column on health issues.
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Q: Is red wine really good for you? I prefer white wine-should I switch?
A: As a resident of one of California’s lush grape-growing regions, answering this excellent question may prove hazardous to my health. But I’ll risk it…
In 1991, Professor Serge Reynaud unveiled a landmark concept in the British medical journal, Lancet. He described the “French Paradox,” the strange phenomenon that French citizens have lower heart disease mortality rates than other western nations despite higher smoking rates and a cholesterol-rich diet.
Professor Reynaud attributed this phenomenon to wine consumption-particularly red wine.
Red wine is rich in antioxidants, compounds that protect the heart by increasing HDL levels in the blood (”good cholesterol”) and prevent the formation of blood clots and cholesterol-laden plaques. These clots and plaques block arteries in the heart and brain, leading to heart attacks and strokes.
This article was met with delight by cardiologists and oenophiles alike. But is it as simple as “a Merlot a day keeps the doctor away”?
Unfortunately, no.
Hearts, Livers and the AHA
The American Heart Association (AHA) cautions that every good intention has an unintended consequence. Though light to moderate alcohol intake (One or two drinks 3-4 times weekly for men, less for women) did appear to reduce rates of heart disease in some people studied, for others there were damaging effects.
The way that alcohol is broken down in the human body requires our systems to deal with a toxic, formaldehyde-like material. This toxin, acetaldehyde, decreases oxygen levels. It also depletes critical vitamins like Niacin and Thiamine and actually destroys the ability of brain cells to communicate.
Alcohol raises levels of triglycerides, another type of fat in the blood. Carbohydrates are found in wine, beer and spirits; high blood pressure and diabetes result from excess caloric intake. Alcohol consumption is associated with higher risks of suicide, liver damage, breast cancer and-no surprise-alcoholism. It is not possible to predict which drinkers will develop these problems, even among those who intend to drink only moderately.
Therefore, the AHA recommendation is for non-drinkers not to start drinking as a good health measure.
Shaken, Not Decanted
Is red wine better than white wine or booze?
This difficult question was made no less complicated by research that examined the size of the different antioxidants found in wine. It was demonstrated that although red wine has higher levels of protective antioxidants than did white wine, the protective compounds in white wine are smaller, more easily absorbed and may be more efficient. Still too clear? Add this mixer: beer also contains compounds that thin the blood and therefore may be protective as wine against clot formation.
Grape Juice and “Wine by the Pill”
If alcohol is potentially dangerous, shouldn’t grape juice or extracts from wine be just as beneficial without the side effects?
In a word, no. Alcohol, especially consumed on an empty stomach, increases the absorption of beneficial antioxidants. Though there may be helpful effects from consuming antioxidants from other sources, there does appear to be an effect specific to alcohol-containing drinks.
What Do I Do?
As of 2005, there is no “one cask fits all” answer to this question. For light to moderate drinkers (for women, one drink daily or less), there isn’t clear evidence to support recommending abstinence. For non-drinkers, there is significant evidence against starting to drink just for heart protective effects.
For heavy drinkers, medical recommendations are the most clear: whether the alcohol comes in a six-pack or a fancy bottle. eliminating or drastically reducing alcohol consumption is critical to preventing the cascade of physical, emotional and financial damage associated with heavy use. A sobering thought, indeed.
Dr. Linda Halderman www.lindahalderman.com is a Board Certified General Surgeon who serves as a Senior Policy Consultant in the California State Senate. Information in this column may not apply to any individual, depending on his or her health circumstances; a physician should be directly consulted before changing any health regimen.
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15 Comments
Tristan Phillips:I love this nonsense: diabetes result from excess caloric intake”. A board certified surgeon spits out this crap? Stick to carving up people and leave the explanation of medical conditions to the professionals.
Diabetes is a condition where the body does not process or produce insulin. Unless a brand new study has been released diabetes is not a direct result of excess calorie intake. Obesity is a strong indication of developing diabetes, but it is not the cause.
Why is it that the quacks promoting junk science get the coverage, and not the doctors who know what they’re talking about?
May 5, 2008 - 2:58 am Don:So a cereal diet will lead to longer life (as well as more entertaining evenings)? My lifestyle is vindicated!! Another round for the house on me!!
May 5, 2008 - 3:53 am Maximus:It’s not nonsense, Tristan. Obese people have a far greater rate of diabetes. Continual excess caloric intake = weight gain = greater odds of developing diabetes. Lose the weight.
May 5, 2008 - 6:41 am Charlie (Colorado):Diabetes is a condition where the body does not process or produce insulin. Unless a brand new study has been released diabetes is not a direct result of excess calorie intake. Obesity is a strong indication of developing diabetes, but it is not the cause.
Hmmm. I think you’d best check the literature more carefully, Tristan. It’s a feedback loop: people who add weight are at greater risk of developing diabetes type II (insulin resistant), and people who are insulin resistant add weight easily, especially with high glycemic index diets. The mechanisms in the first clause are not super-well understood, but they’re well known.
May 5, 2008 - 9:40 am Benson:So how do we resolve the French Paradox? Isn’t that the basic question that should be thoroughly researched?
Tristan may have a point. I wonder whether anybody understands the cause(s) of diabetes. Obesity? There is an association, but is it causal? Seems as if the issue is far from settled.
Marching orders for health professionals: do more research, and when you discover something new and important, report. In that order!
Translation: there is no point in cautionary speculation about what might happen, maybe, to some non-drinkers who start drinking lightly. The negative effects of alcohol are no secret to the lay population, and are very likely already feared by people who do not drink.
May 5, 2008 - 8:15 pm cthulhu:One of these days, they’re going to come up with something like Heliobacter pylori or HPV that turns out to cause diabetes, and the entire medical profession could end up dangling from lampposts.
In both of the above cases, ulcers and cervical cancer were linked to lifestyle issues or bad luck for literally centuries….until an infectious agent for each was ultimately discovered (Ulcers: 1985 per http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barry_Marshall; HPV: 1999 according to http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/10ed42.htm).
Currently, the medical profession is linking diabetes (and obesity) to lifestyle issues and/or bad luck…..but where ulcers and cervical cancer were comparatively rare, the CDC says that nearly one out of three Americans is obese. If obesity/diabetes turns out to be primarily caused by an infectious agent or environmental hazard, one out of three Americans will be seriously miffed — as in “declare the AMA a terrorist organization” miffed.
May 5, 2008 - 11:22 pm James:Did anyone take into account that France has the best health care? According to World Health Organization. This could be huge! Why are people so unhealthy in America verse France could be that France has better health coverage and people are way more willing to goto the doctor, better access, better funding for health care. Or could it be that every August everyone takes the month off for vacation? Unlike US were people work them selves to death just to have a million dollar home and a range rover. France would not be the proper place to make this judgment. Spend a 5 year study on US population and than tell me the results.
May 6, 2008 - 12:39 am Andi:As for grape juice and red wine extract, even if alcohol does increase the absorbtion of antioxidants this does not mean that an increased intake of those antioxidants, poorly absorbed, is not beneficial. This is particularly true when you consider that an extract can be safely consumed in far greater quantities than wine.
I think I’ll keep popping those purple pills.
May 6, 2008 - 8:12 am Dennis:I take the positive Biblical approach and have published 2 books on the subject: (1) God Gave Wine, by Ken Gentry, a very thorough exegetical approach, and (2) Drinking with Calvin and Luther! by Jim West, an historical approach. These 2 books answer just about every question and can be reviewed at Oakdown.com
May 6, 2008 - 12:47 pm AL:One study debunked the Frensh paradox pointing out that French coroners undercounted the number of deaths due to heart disease. The coroners classified deaths that US coroners would have counted as heart disease under other categories. That said, the French eat a lot less than we do, but drink a lot more. Also interesting is that US obesity rates and diabetes rate follow trend lines similar to that of per capita soft drink consumption. Dr Halderman might want to cover that issue to provide a definitive answer to Tristan’s comment.
May 6, 2008 - 1:23 pm John Moore:Recent research has shown that gastric bypass surgery, a treatment for obesity, reverses type II diabetes even in people who don’t lose weight or cut calories. There is a trial in progress that seems to show that blocking absorption of food in the duodenum will reverse type II diabetes - again, independent of obesity and caloric input.
Nobody has a clue yet about the causes of this, AFAIK. This may indeed be the H. Pylori of diabetes.
The standard model of type II diabetes is that excess insulin, caused by excess caloric intake, causes damage to cells’ insulin response, and also causes some of the health problems of diabetes (primarily vascular disease). This doesn’t fit with the newest finding.
On the other hand, maybe that finding is wrong. Who knows.
But one this is certain: there is a strong correlation between obesity and type II diabetes. Tristan is clueless - imagining that there is only one kind of diabetes (low insulin production - type I or juvenile diabetes) when the majority of diabetics are type II (insulin resistant).
There are also strong genetic components. One of the Indian tribes here in Arizona has the highest rate of type II diabetes of any ethnic group in the world - by far. The supposition is that the tribe went through a serious carbohydrate famine in the past, winnowing out all but those who process carbohydrates too effectively for the modern diet.
May 6, 2008 - 8:31 pm Paul in CA:In fewer words, the good doctor seems to say:
May 7, 2008 - 1:15 pm Martin Lindeskog:If you don’t drink, don’t start, because there’s not enough evidence it will benefit your health.
If you do drink, moderately, don’t stop, because there’s not enough evidence it will harm your health.
If you drink heavuily, cut it out! It will harm your health.
What a waste of time.
I often drink a glass of red wine together with my dinner. In order to be on the safe side, I eat a dietary supplement that is containing flavonoids from fruits and vegetables. The product comes from Hungary. Did you know that Hungary has more than 20 different wine districts?
Linda Halderman: Do you know professor Dr. Zoltán Dinay? He will visit Sweden (Gothenburg and Stockholm) on May 17 - 18.
May 8, 2008 - 2:33 am Chequers:Study after study commencing as early as 1974 clearly indicated that subjects in their thousands benefited from lower rates of heart disease and stroke from alcohol consumption.The earlier ones showed that the benefits increased with the amounts consumed and in the process,recommended ridiculous amounts of daily consumption.
May 8, 2008 - 5:21 am Dave:This resulted in predictable commentary by other socially concerned medico’s within a week of the study results’ announcement with a cautionary tale and within a month of same these authorities were saying for good health don’t drink.The red wine thing just muddies the issue.But think about it. Do you want drunk and hungover staff in the operating room or in an airport control tower or in any work place for that matter?
but there was also the “Copenhagen study” of the 1970s (findable on-line) which demonstrated that over a long period in the 1970s and early 1980s a very large control group (10,000+ Danes) showed distinctly lower heart disease and lower mortality rates that were directly correlated with red wine consumption; and even more threatening for traditional public health tut-tutting, the 1-2 glass a day drinkers did not do as well health-wise as the 2+ glasses a day red wine drinkers …. You can look it up.
May 8, 2008 - 7:42 am