Moderate Wine Intake – How It Works

I’ve raved for years about the benefits of a glass or two of wine a day – preferably red wine. Now we may be getting a clue as to how it works this effect. An international team of researchers in Europe has just posted the results of a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition online section. Their purpose was to find out if alcohol consumption is associated with raised levels of omega-3 fatty acids, both in plasma and red blood cell membranes.

The data came from the Dietary Habit Profile in European Communities with Different Risk of Myocardial Infarction (IMMIDIET) study, which ran in three different countries – Italy, Belgium, and England. There were 800-odd men-women pairs (actually 1,604 subjects) aged 26–65. Food and alcohol intake was determined by food frequency questionnaires. Blood samples provided material for analysis of plasma eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and EPA + DHA levels in both plasma and red blood cell membrane.

As expected, there was a clear correlation between alcohol intake and these omega-3 levels. One drink a day for women and two for men led to higher omega-3 levels, independently of their fish intake. When the type of alcohol was analyzed, it was found that the link between intake and omega-3 levels was stronger for wine than for other forms – beer or liquor. One of the researchers stated: “. . . components of wine other than alcohol is associated with omega-3 fatty acid concentration. We may guess that this effect can be ascribed to polyphenols.” A likely candidate is resveratrol, a polyphenol found in grape skins. This is consistent with the finding that red wine is more effective in preventing cardiovascular disease than white wine.  Cheers!