Are There Health Benefits of Drinking Wine?

Are there health benefits of drinking wine? Does red wine lower cholesterol? Are there other red wine heart benefits? This section covers some of the latest research on these topics and more.

Many people want to know more about the link between red wine and heart health benefits. This question comes up over and over again since there are some 'heart healthy' substances in red wine.

Red wine is a source of flavonoids which is an antioxidant. Based on the results of recent studies, reports have shown that antioxidants might improve the function of blood vessels. This is just one of the reasons people want to know about the benefits of wine, specifically red wine.

The other 'heart healthy' substance in red wine is a compound called resveratrol. This is also an antioxidant. You can learn more about this compound on the Resveratrol Benefits page.

The research on these two antioxidants is still underway, although there are several studies that show the positive impacts of antioxidants.

Cholesterol and Red Wine

What about the impact of red wine on cholesterol? Does it red wine lower cholesterol?

The benefits on your cholesterol is the impact to your HDL or good cholesterol. Studies have shown that moderate intake of alcohol, both in red wine and other drinks, does slightly increase your HDL or good cholesterol. However, eating a healthy diet and exercising can have even more positive impact on your HDL cholesterol.

The challenge with coming up with a fully definitive answer on the health benefits of drinking wine is in part based on how the studies are conducted. To date, there have not been any direct research tests that only include testing the benefits of drinking wine.

Many of the studies include other heart healthy elements that are shown to decrease the rate of heart disease or stroke in study participants. Those other elements include some studies with change in diet, level of exercise, etc. in addition to the amount of wine consumption.

This is why it's really hard to get a definitive answer on the overall health benefits of drinking wine.

The American Heart Association recommends always drinking in moderation which is no more than one glass for women and two glasses a day for men. They also do not recommend drinking red wine or other alcoholic drinks in an attempt to get health benefits from drinking wine or other drinks. They also state that drinking too much alcohol can have a negative impact which reverses any potential positive health benefits of drinking wine.

As more studies are conducted, researchers will continue to try to understand the overall link between red wine and health.

What is the cause of red wine headaches? Find out more on the Red Wine and Headaches page. How many calories are there in a glass of red wine? Find a red wine calorie chart for some of the most common types of red wine on the How Many Calories in Red Wine? page.