Red Wine: Elixir Of Life?

Scientists are also looking at whether it could help other amyloid-related diseases such as Huntington's and Parkinson's. Studies at INSERM in Paris have shown that resveratrol may protect against Huntington's disease.

Everything in moderation

But what about the negative effects of alcohol? Research has shown that unlike other alcoholic beverages, red wine does not suppress the immune system. Scientists at the Institute of Nutritional Physiology, Karlsruhe, Germany found that daily, moderate consumption of red wine for two weeks had no adverse effects on human immune cell functions in healthy men.

Of course ‘moderate’ should be our watchword in order to avoid the hazards of excessive consumption, for example, liver disease, dental erosion, and mouth cancer. As Janet Stanford of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center puts it, moderation is the key. “Red wine may be good for the prostate and the heart, but only if it doesn't lead to other adverse effects caused by over-indulgence in alcohol,” she says.

At present, the constituents of red wine have not been shown to prevent or treat any disease in humans, but there are many studies under way aimed at elucidating the precise mechanism by which they exert their influence. For the time being, it seems, the odd glass of red wine really can’t do any harm and might actually do us some good.

For more information:

Mount Sinai School of Medicine - Cabernet Sauvignon Red Wine Reduces the Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease
http://fusion.mssm.edu/media/content.cfm?storynum=303

Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre - A Glass of Red Wine a Day May Keep Prostate Cancer Away
http://www.fhcrc.org/about/ne/news/2004/09/22/red_wine.html