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Red Wine is a rich source of biologically active phytochemicals. Particular compounds called polyphenols, such as catechins and resveratrol, are thought to have antioxidant or anti-cancer properties.
Polyphenols are antioxidant compounds found in the skin and seeds of grapes. When wine is made from these grapes, the alcohol produced by the fermentation process dissolves the polyphenols contained in the skin and seeds.
Red wine contains more polyphenols than white wine because the making of white wine requires the removal of the skins after the grapes are crushed. The phenols in red wine include catechin, gallic acid, and epicatechin.
Function; Reasons For Use
Polyphenols have been found to have antioxidant properties. As well as being an antioxidant, resveratrol has been shown to reduce tumor incidence in animals by affecting one or more stages of cancer development (initiation, promotion and progression). It has been shown to inhibit growth of many types of cancer cells in culture. Evidence also exists that in can reduce inflammation; it also reduces activation of NF kappa B, a protein produced by the body's immune system when it is under attack.
Research on the antioxidants found in red wine has shown that they may help inhibit the development of certain cancers, but more research is needed as at the time of writing. Although consuming large amounts of alcohol may increase the risk of some cancers, there is growing evidence that the health benefits of red wine are related to its non-alcoholic components.
According to researchers in Spain, drinking wine -- especially red -- stops people from developing colds. The same effect was not observed with beer and spirits. The evidence comes from a year-long study of 4,000 volunteers. Experts at five universities found that people who drank more than two glasses of red wine per day had 44% fewer colds than teetotallers. Drinking one glass of red wine each day protected to a lesser extent.
Red wine has been associated with a number of health benefits, including a lower rate of heart disease.
Ingredients in red wine may also prevent herpes, according to a recent study.
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GLOSSARY
Antioxidant (Antioxidants)
A chemical compound that slows or prevents oxygen from reacting with other compounds. Antioxidants are substances that protect cells from oxidative damage caused by molecules called free radicals. These chemicals can damage important parts of cells, such as proteins, membranes, and DNA. Some antioxidants have been shown to have cancer-protecting potential because they neutralize free radicals. Examples include vitamins C and E, beta carotene, the minerals selenium and germanium, superoxide dismutase (SOD), coenzyme Q10, catalase, and some amino acids.
Cancer
Refers to the various types of malignant neoplasms that contain cells growing out of control and invading adjacent tissues, which may metastasize to distant tissues.
Herpes
A small group of capsid-forming DNA viruses, sometimes divided into Type I (forming vesicles and blisters on the mouth, lips-generally above the waist) and Type II (usually sexually-transmitted, with symptoms mostly below the waist). Both types form acute initial outbreaks, go dormant, reactivate, and so forth. For most folks, frequent outbreaks are clear signs of stress or immunosuppression. Both types are equally dangerous for infants.
Immune System (Immune Response, Immunity)
A complex that protects the body from disease organisms and other foreign bodies. The system includes the humoral immune response and the cell-mediated response. The immune system also protects the body from invasion by making local barriers and inflammation. The process may involve acquired immunity (the ability to learn and remember a specific infectious agent), or innate immunity (the genetically programmed system of responses that attack, digest, remove, and initiate inflammation and tissue healing).
Phytochemicals (Phytochemical)
Substances such as vitamins and minerals that occur naturally in plants and have been shown in research to possibly prevent or cure disease.
Protein (Proteins)
Compounds composed of hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen present in the body and in foods that form complex combinations of amino acids. Protein is essential for life and is used for growth and repair. Foods that supply the body with protein include animal products, grains, legumes, and vegetables. Proteins from animal sources contain the essential amino acids. Proteins are changed to amino acids in the body.
Resveratrol
A type of polyphenol called a phytoalexin, a class of compounds produced as part of a plant's defense system against disease. It is produced in the plant in response to an invading fungus, stress, injury, infection or ultraviolet radiation. Red wine contains high levels of resveratrol, as do grapes, raspberries, peanuts and other plants.
Tumor (Tumors, Tumour, Tumours)
An abnormal growth of tissue resulting from uncontrolled, progressive multiplication of cells and serving no physiological function; a neoplasm. Literally, a swelling; in the past the term has been used in reference to any swelling of the body, no matter what the cause. However, the word is now being used almost exclusively to refer to a neoplastic mass, and the more general usage is being discarded.
Last updated: Aug 30, 2009
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