Oh Marvelous Mediterranean by Nathan Johnsonic Part 2: When in Rome . . . or Even Home, Treat Your Heart to a Glass of Red Wine print article      send to a friend

While the title of this article is clearly borrowed from an old proverb, its message is no less important than the original.

Most doctors and scientists agree that drinking a few glasses of wine per week substantially decreases the risk of developing heart disease. Studies have shown that the populations bordering the Mediterranean, who consume a great deal more red wine than the people of Northern Europe and the United States, have a much lower incidence of heart-related ailments and diseases.

Over the past decade, much attention has been given to the so-called "French Paradox." In France, whose people prefer that their food be literally dripping with fat, the rate of heart disease is no more than one third that of the United States.

A few remaining skeptics point to other factors that may account for the astoundingly low rate of heart disease among the French, such as the healthy-hearted diet of Mediterranean populations, which includes a high intake of fruits, vegetables, and other heart-friendly foods (Part 1 of this series, which appeared in our January/February issue, noted the virtues of olive oil.) Skeptics also point to the fact that a large percentage of red wine drinkers in the U.S come from high-income backgrounds, a condition commonly associated with good overall health. But in France and throughout the entire Mediterranean basin, the situation is different; rich and poor alike share in the ancient custom of drinking wine with their meals.

The Secret: Flavonoids

The grapes used to make red wine contain phenolic chemical compounds, one of which, flavonoids, have been found to be particularly helpful in aiding high density lipids (hdl), or "good cholesterol." How do these little heart-savers work? "The flavonoids and [other] phenolic compounds are the active agents in the red wines . . . [and] the hdl [good cholesterol] is the response to the flavonoids," explains San Diego cardiologist G. Douglas Moir, MD, a fellow of the American College of Cardiology. Flavonoids help prevent low density lipids (ldl), or "bad cholesterol," from binding to the interior walls of arteries, a process that lessens the risk of total blockage of the artery.

The good news if you don't drink is that flavonoids are found in a variety of fruits and fruit juices. However, because exposure to oxygen drastically reduces the number of flavonoids, their concentration is much higher in wine- and in particular, red wine.

Just What the Doctor Ordered?

With all the hype surrounding red wine, should you hop off the exercise bike and run to the nearest liquor store? Not necessarily. Although doctors have generally agreed for years on the health related benefits of red wine, many have been reluctant to "prescribe" wine as a preventative measure. For one, doctors feared that North American and Northern European consumers, who have been shown to be more prone to drinking extremes (binge drinking on the one hand, total abstinence on the other), might take the news about wine as an excuse for abuse.

In addition, because it is so important that certain groups avoid any alcohol intake whatsoever, some doctors still hesitate to encourage even moderate alcohol consumption. The best way to determine whether you should consider adding red wine to your diet is by talking to your doctor. "It's a decision [patients] ought to discuss with their doctors, in case [they have] other medical conditions," says Dr. Moir. "There are a whole host of conditions that could be aggravated by alcohol, even in modest amounts." People who should avoid drinking alcohol in any amount include (among others) pregnant women, people who don't drink due to moral or religious reasons, alcoholics and addicts of other drugs, and people with liver or skin problems.

Nevertheless, because the benefits of red wine are now widely recognized within the medical community, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms now allows wine makers to promote these benefits. And doctors are increasingly prescribing red wine as a preventative means to reduce the risk of heart disease.

Assuming your doctor gives you the go-ahead, the best approach for integrating red wine into your diet is to practice consistency and moderation. Why? As Dr. Moir points out, the first clue that red wine saved lives came through a series of studies that looked at drinking patterns. Moderate drinkers were defined as those people who consumed one to two drinks daily. "Be it a shot of whiskey or a glass of wine," explains Dr. Moir, those who drank only one or two drinks per day "had a lower incidence of stroke . . . heart attack, (and) other cardiovascular events than either abstainers or heavier drinkers." In a nutshell, studies consistently demonstrate an important statistic; while moderate wine drinkers experience a number of benefits, drinking in large quantities can have the opposite effect.