The wine! You will be surprised, but wine is good for health

You open the cork after a busy day at the office and the thick wine fills the crystal glass. Then you hear that voice whispering in your ear "should I drink wine?"

You try to choose healthy food, go to the gym or do yoga several times a week. The question you ask yourself is: Am I failing my efforts with these few sips? You know perfectly well that you shouldn't overdo it with food, but what about those few glasses of wine a week?

You've certainly heard about the benefits that red wine has for the cardiovascular system, but that's not your main concern either - you eat well, take care of your body with exercises several times a week.

The wine! You will be surprised, but:

Wine is good for health

Get ready for surprises

In addition to the benefits for the circulatory system and the heart, wine has an impressive arsenal of surprises in the care of your body. A large part of these surprises are related to resveratrol - a powerful natural antioxidant. The main sources of resveratrol in the food chain are red grapes, blueberries, peanuts and pistachios. This natural ingredient in grapes has the main task of fighting bacteria, fungi, as well as maintaining the fruit in periods of drought or insufficient sources of nutrients.

Perhaps resveratrol is the magic ingredient behind wine's powerful healing powers. Here is the time to add that the dietary supplement resveratrol that you can buy from the pharmacy does not have the healing properties that a glass of wine can bring you. This means that the benefit is in the constellation of elements, additives and powers complementing the action of this magical natural phenol.

And one more important clarification, the benefits we are talking about apply mainly to red wine.

1. Extends life

Exactly. Studies conducted on the island of Ikarios show that people live much longer than in other parts of the world. The daily use of wine there is part of the dining tradition. An additional element in the diet of the people of the island is the increased consumption of vegetable food and the smaller use of food of animal origin. A large part of the population of Crete and Sardinia consumes red wine. A 2007 study linked procyanides, elements found in tannins, to heart function. Wine produced in the warmer southern regions of Europe contains a greater concentration of these elements.

Researchers at Harvard Medical University have found evidence that resveratrol directly activates a protein that improves health and extends life. Resveratrol also increases the activity of a group of genes associated with aging diseases.

2. You get smarter

Resveratrol supports the so-called short term memory. After just 30 minutes of testing, the researchers found that the wine/resveratrol subjects had a significant increase in word recall, as well as faster responses in the part of the brain associated with memory formation, learning and emotions.

3. Treats acne and cares for the skin

Resveratrol inhibits the growth of acne-causing bacteria much longer than benzoyl peroxide, the drug used to treat acne. And the two elements work best in combination. So far, the only proven method is the use of the antioxidant internally (a glass of wine 🙂 ) The use of Resveratrol in creams and externally is not effective. So get resveratrol through wine, fruit rather than buying expensive creams.

4. Wine may be more effective than the gym

Prefer a glass of wine to tiring exercises at the gym? Researchers from the University of Alberta in Canada found that the antioxidant resveratrol improves the functions of the heart, brain and bone system. Going to the gym or playing sports works in a similar way to these systems.

However, imagine what the combined effect of sports with a glass of wine in the evening would be?

5. Say goodbye to depression

You know wine relaxes… but… Depression? Spanish scientists found that men and women consumed two to seven glasses of wine weekly very rarely are they diagnosed with depression. Even taking into account the different lifestyles of the participants in these studies prove that the health effect is undeniable.

6. It reduces (not the other way around) the risk of liver diseases

The research challenges popular beliefs about the effects of wine alcohol and liver health. Moderate consumption of red wine (within a glass of wine daily) reduces the risk of liver disease.

Not only that, it has been proven that the risk of liver disease in moderate wine drinkers is twice as low as in absolute abstainers!

Too saintly and god isn't drag, is he?

Similarly, people who drank less wine were 4 times less likely to have liver disease than people who drank beer or hard liquor.

7. Improves eyesight

Resveratrol reduces the growth of blood vessels in the eyes, according to St. Louis Medical University. It can help treat diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. These studies were done on mice, and the dose that would be useful in humans is still unclear, but it's still a good start, right?

8. Take care of your sparkling smile

Did you know that drinking wine is a little-known way to keep your teeth free of bacteria? We have already mentioned the antimicrobial effect of wine on the skin. Well, it also reduces the bacteria on our teeth. Scientists have studied the five bacteria that are the main culprits in the formation of plaque on the teeth. After tests with applying a thin biofilm of red wine on the teeth, these bacteria were almost completely destroyed.

9. Reduces the risk of many types of cancer

Breast cancer

Red grapes are the fruit that most strongly inhibits the activity of the aromatase enzyme used by tumors to produce their own estrogen. The use of wine, as well as red grapes, especially with the seeds, definitely reduces the risk of breast cancer and stops the process of tumor growth. Scientists also believe that resveratrol destroys cancer cells by interrupting the food chains that support them.

Colon cancer

Research shows that moderate consumption of red wine reduces the risk of colon cancer with 50%

Prostate cancer

Research from the Department of Men's Health at Harvard demonstrated a reduction in the risk of prostate cancer with 52% in moderate wine drinkers (4-7 glasses of wine per week) compared to non-wine drinkers.

Red wine is especially beneficial for aggressive or advanced cancer. Doctors attribute this effect to flavonoids and resveratrol, which contain extremely powerful antioxidants that balance male hormones that stimulate the prostate

10. Chases away colds

Maybe grandmother's ilachis are very real? A study of over 4,000 students and teachers found that moderate wine drinkers were many times less likely to catch a cold or runny nose than beer/hard drinkers.

Researchers believe that antioxidants, which reduce inflammation and also cold symptoms, are responsible for this.

11. Lowers cholesterol, even without changing your diet

Resveratrol reduces the so-called bad cholesterol and increases the good. This means that our blood vessels will have less plaque and deposits.

Even the American Heart Association confirms that moderate wine consumption increases good cholesterol by about 12%

12. Reduces the risk of heart attack

Wine reduces the risk of heart attack and ischemic heart disease. Numerous studies make a definite connection between moderate wine consumption.

People who drink little wine have the lowest heart attack risks. Both beer/hard drinkers and abstainers have higher levels of risk!

13. Regulates blood sugar level (without medication!)

Red wine is rich in polyphenols. These compounds in wine interact with cells involved in the production and storage of fat and the regulation of blood sugar levels. The amount of polyphenols in a small glass of wine sometimes surpasses the effect of some antidiabetic drugs.

14. Reduces the risk of diabetes

Both women and men consuming moderate amounts of red wine were over 30% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes. The likely reason again lies in our friend resveratrol, which improves insulin sensitivity. Insulin resistance has been cited as a major cause of type 2 diabetes.

Don't make this basic mistake!

The big mistake people make is thinking that buying a bottle of wine will give them all these benefits.

No, in order to stay healthy and be truly happy, you must combine the miraculous effects of wine into an overall healthy approach consisting of good food, plenty of exercise, and moderate wine consumption.

Food supplements also do not have the same effect as simple and well-chosen foods in our daily life. Nature is complex and we haven't figured out how to put it in a bottle yet and I hope we don't succeed 🙂

The most important thing is to look at the big picture from the side and slowly start building the mosaic of our healthy and happy life

Get the best of Italians' slow southern life with their love of simple, simple yet healthy food. Enjoy the company of loved ones.

Choose your food, your wine, your friends slowly and carefully

And enjoy the glass of wine without any guilt!

Read more: 17 foods that resemble the parts of the body they're good for + bonus - an honorary drink

Based on materials from lifehack.com

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