Wine is more than just an alcoholic beverage that people pour over a glass after dark or drink during parties. Drinking wine has health advantages you may not be aware of. Indeed, it’s not just a stress-buster because researchers continue to discover and report positive effects of drinking wine. Red and purple grapes and other natural ingredients that make up your favorite drink can help boost your wellness.
1. Makes Drinkers Smarter
Gordon Shepherd, a Yale neuroscientist, believes that drinking wine is similar to exercising both the left and the right portions of the brain. Sniffing and swilling the liquid at both sides of the mouth stimulates areas in the brain responsible for motor processing. He also believes that tasting the flavors of wine involves brain activity similar to meditation, learning a new language, and reading a book.
Even the seemingly simple act of holding wine glass properly makes a drinker more mindful. The purpose of your drinking vessel's delicate stem is to keep the heat of your hands off the bowl that contains the wine. Heat can alter the taste of wine. Other than that, proper holding helps avoid injuries because the stem can easily break under pressure.
2. Rich In Antioxidants
The oxidation process in the body can create harmful free radicals that can destroy cell membranes. Certain diseases have been connected with free radical oxidation, such as cancer, cardiovascular and inflammatory diseases, and cataracts, among others.
Red wine is a popular drink that anyone can enjoy, and it has a great number of antioxidants. Examples of these antioxidants are resveratrol, catechins, and epicatechins that counter these free radicals by scavenging and neutralizing them. These antioxidants can keep you healthy.
3. May Support Mental Health
It may sound unlikely that wine can help fight off depression in wine drinkers when the alcohol it contains can worsen. But a study by PREDIMED concluded that up to seven glasses of moderate wine drinking in a week might keep depression at bay.
The study was conducted with 5,500 wine drinkers throughout a seven-year period. The researchers also took lifestyle, diet, and smoking habits into account, and the results remained the same.
The next time you host a dinner party, do so with wines that you and your friends love. Hosting an event to look forward to on the weekend and bonding with the people you love are just two of the best means to destress. But remember to pair your wines with the right kind of food.
4. Immune System-Booster
While natural food, vitamins, and supplements can help keep your body’s resistance robust, moderate wine drinking may also do the same for you.
A study by the Oregon Health & Science University shows that moderate drinking alcohol may reduce the risk of death. Drinkers are said to be healthier because of their improved cardiovascular functions, improved response to vaccines, and enhanced infection resistance.
Keep in mind that these benefits are possible because of the controlled amount of alcohol in the system. Too much alcohol content in the body may lead to adverse effects.
5. Lowers Bad Cholesterol
If you’re worried about your heart health, you’d be glad to know that red wine can do you some good in that area. The alcohol coming from wine might raise high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, otherwise known to be the good cholesterol, to 15%. Simultaneously, the polyphenol antioxidants from the alcohol content may lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or bad cholesterol—the kind that causes heart disease and stroke.
Through this, the good cholesterol transports the bad ones to the liver. The liver then flushes out the bad cholesterol out of your body. Experts still say that moderate drinking with a good diet such as Mediterranean food choices and a healthy lifestyle can contribute to your overall health.
6. Regulation Of Blood Sugar
If you have diabetes, moderately drinking wine may help control blood sugar levels because of resveratrol. The compound is similar to an antioxidant and is naturally found on the skins of red grapes. These skins are included in the wine-making process that also gives specific wines their dark red color.
Peanuts and berries also contain resveratrol. The compound also lowers insulin resistance and hinders inflammation. According to some researchers, resveratrol may be used to treat diabetes, although it may require more studies.
7. Decreases Joint Pain
Aside from lowering blood sugar, there are studies on resveratrol supplements and how they might treat joint pain and slow down the cartilage's deterioration. There are also animal studies where the subjects were injected resveratrol onto their knees and suffered lesser damage than those who have arthritis. This is due to the potential ability of resveratrol to control inflammation. At the same time, resveratrol can also reduce oxidative stress and carcinogenesis, transforming normal cells into cancer cells.
8. Prevents Brain Diseases
The degenerative disease of the brain is frightening, as losing one’s memories has a profound effect on the sick person and their loved ones. Dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are just two of the worse cases that can occur during old age. The former can progress to the latter if not treated right away.
One way of the claimed ways of preventing the occurrence of these diseases is to drink wine. Resveratrol, once again, takes center stage as it keeps the path open for the transportation of glucose and oxygen. Resveratrol keeps the brain well-fed with enough supply, which helps it retain memories.
9. Good Skin
Drinking wine moderately can give your body enough antioxidants that fight off acne-causing germs. It can help improve skin elasticity and brighten your complexion. Wine can also enhance blood circulation that prevents the formation of wrinkles. But while it has benefits to your skin, drinking too much wine can also dehydrate it. It’s best to be careful so that one doesn’t get carried away with wine consumption.
Conclusion
Wine drinking is an enjoyable activity that you can do alone or with people you love. There have been many studies summarizing its benefits to human longevity and brain functioning. But while it does look like an activity that’s good for you, keep in mind that too much can be hazardous. A glass of wine is not harmful, meanwhile, too much alcohol content in your body can be detrimental. Remember to drink responsibly to maximize the benefits of drinking wine to your health.
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