WINE IS HEALTHY!

BEST REASONS TO DRINK WINE

The next time you raise a glass of wine to toast a friend's health, you may be doing more than expressing goodwill. A great number of studies have been done to determine the therapeutic and disease-fighting powers of wine, both red and white. While some of the studies cited are more conclusive than others, each of them offers a good reason to make wine part of daily life.
Here are 10 of the most compelling findings;

• Wine may prolong your life. In 1997, Michael Thun,M.D., and his colleagues at he American Cancer Society tallied the health-related pros and cons of alcohol consumption and found that one or two drinks a day over a nine year period reduced a person's risk of death by 20%.

• Wine decreases your risk of heart disease. Researchers found that this level of wine consumption raises HDL cholesterol ( the good kind, which prevents fatty deposits from building up in artery walls ) and inhibits the formation of blood clots when they form. Additionally,recent research suggest that consuming wine with meals helps reduce the proliferation of Moorhead muscle cells inside the arteries, thereby preventing atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).

• Wine can improve your blood cholesterol level. Beyond the ability of moderate alcohol consumption to raise levels of heart-protective HDL cholesterol,
a 1998 study of 300 middle-aged men suggest that social drinking
(defined as one to four glasses of wine a week) may also reduce blood concentration of lipoprotein.
This protein appears to play a role similar to that of harmful LDL cholesterol, leading to the deposit of fat in blood vessels. More than moderate drinking, however, can cause a rise in triglycerides, the fatty compounds in blood whose elevated levels have found to predict heart attacks and atherosclerosis, particularly in women.

• Wine may reduced your risk of arterial disease in the legs. Researchers discovered that men who drink one or two alcohol beverages a day have a 32 percent lower risk of peripheral arterial disease, or hardening of the arterial legs. This protective effect, the researchers speculate, may be due to the impact of the alcohol lipid levels, especially the impact on HDLs. It's also possible that alcohol improves the flow of blood to the extremities.

• Wine might decrease your risk of
blindness. Nutrition Survey found that those who consume moderate amounts of wine have a significantly lower risk of developing age-related muscular degeneration, the leading cause of blindness among men and women over 65. Possible factors include wine's antioxidant
(substances that prevent free radicals from causing cellular damage). Tannins, (astringent compounds) and flavonoids
(substances in plant that have anti-inflammatory properties and other benefits), any or all of which may slow down the deterioration of the macula in the eye.

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