Immaculate Consumption

Touting the Health Benefits of Wine


By Kent Rosenblum

    Over the last 20 years, there have been an amazing number of studies showing that wine consumption is good for your health. The medical field has been slow to prescribe this vinous potion—I’m sure to avoid creating a world of alcoholics—and, to some degree, there is disagreement about the recommended varietals and volume. But where else can you find a medicine that improves the taste of your food, serves as a great topic of conversation, lowers bad cholesterol, raises good cholesterol, aids in digestion, kills off bacteria and may reduce your risk of cancer? If only penicillin could taste so good.
    Of course, the food you consume along with your wine plays a major role in your health quotient. The Mediterranean diet, which is high in whole grains, fish, fruits, vegetables and olive oil, appears to be a key to longevity. And, these kind of foods encourage a relaxed dining experience conducive to wine consumption. When was the last time you saw anyone sipping a glass of Syrah with a Burger King meal?
    Back in the early ’90s, the investigative television show 60 Minutes presented a segment called “The French Paradox,” which explored why it is that French people, who consume a diet very high in fat, experience significantly less heart disease than Americans. The reporter’s conclusion was that the French consumption of wine was the difference. A substance called resveritrol, which is produced by grapes and found in many wines, was credited with at least part of the answer, with alcohol itself adding to the benefits by preventing platelets from clumping and clots from forming. Red wines in particular were cited as great sources of this potent chemical. This program is credited with lifting then slumping wine sales to a spirited buying frenzy. The movie Sideways recently did the same thing for Pinot Noir, which, by the way, is cited as having the highest levels of resveritrol of all grapes.
    There are now actually capsules of resveritrol that are available—although their shelf life is somewhat suspect—but somehow reducing a glass of red wine and a filet mignon to a couple of pills seems wrong. So, in my mind, you should choose your wines for flavor and enjoyment, not for the levels of various substances. And, remember, a glass of wine a day just may keep the doctor away.