Now we all have the perfect excuse to crack open a bottle of red wine after a long hard day – a glass of red wine increases good cholesterol and lowers levels of a blood-clotting chemical.
New research shows that a daily glass of red wine for four weeks increases HDL or good cholesterol by up to 16 per cent, and reduces the amount of the clotting compound fibrinogen by up to 15 per cent.
And the research shows that it’s the alcohol in the wine that provides the beneficial effects. No similar effects were found among people taking the same amount of red grape extract.
Although red wine has been linked to health benefits, especially for the heart, it’s not been known how the effects are achieved. Antioxidants and other non-alcoholic compounds have been suggested, but the new research points to alcohol itself.
In the research at the Institute of Preventive Medicine in Copenhagen, men and women aged 30 to 74, were given either 300ml of red wine a day, or red grape extract or water for a month, after which their cholesterol and fibrinogen levels were measured.
The levels of good cholesterol went up by between 11 and 16 per cent in the wine drinkers, and the amount of fibrinogen went down by eight to 15 per cent.
HDL cholesterol is considered good because a high level of it seems to protect against heart problemspossibly because it carries cholesterol away from the arteries and back to the liver. Fibrinogen is a bloodclotting agent and high levels are associated with an increased risk of heart problems.
“Moderate red wine consumption for four weeks is associated with desirable changes in HDL and fibrinogen compared with drinking water with or without red grape extract.
“The impact of wine on the cardiovascular risk factors thus seems primarily explained by an alcoholic effect,” say the researchers.
Other research has shown that while red wine may be protective, other forms of alcohol are not. That, say the researchers, may be explained by other lifestyle differences between people who favour different kinds of drink.
Why a glass of red wine with your steak can LOWER cholesterol
- Red wine helps to prevent release of damaging compounds in dark meat that can raise cholesterol
- Researchers say may be the reason why red wine has been linked to a reduced risk of heart disease
For those who dither over whether to have that glass of wine with dinner, it’s good news.
Scientists have discovered that washing down red meat with a glass of red can actually prevent the build-up of cholesterol in the body.
And they say it may be the reason why red wine has been linked to a reduced risk of heart disease
The researchers, from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, found that after eating red or dark meat, compounds called malondialdehyde accumulate in the blood stream.
These can help to form the type of cholesterol that can raise the risk of heart disease.
But when volunteers drank red wine, these compounds were not absorbed into the blood stream.
The researchers say this is because antioxidants in the wine – known as polyphenols – prevented these harmful compounds from being absorbed.
One group of volunteers was given dark turkey cutlets to eat over four days and asked to not eat any other types of meat or fish.
Another group also ate the cutlets, but they were marinated in red wine.
The wine drinkers were found to have lower levels of the harmful compound malondialdehyde in their blood.
Lead researcher Professor Ron Kohen told the Daily Telegraph: ‘Meat is rich in polyunsaturated fat and cholesterol.
‘Our results could provide an explanation for the association between frequent meat consumption and increased risk in developing cardiovascular diseases. Including polyphenol rich products as an integral part of the meal significantly diminish these harmful effects.’
He added that the fact the cutlets were marinated in red wine would have a similar effect to the volunteers drinking the wine with the meal.
After four meals, those who didn’t consume the wine saw their modified cholesterol levels (associated with heart disease) rise by 97 per cent.
But those who did saw their levels remain unchanged or actually decrease.
The study is published in the Journal of Functional Foods.
Last month, researchers from the University of Leicester reported that drinking a large glass of red wine every day could help prevent bowel cancer.
Resveratrol, found in the skins of red grapes and which gives the wine its colour, has long been known to have cancer-fighting properties.
Wine also contains high levels of antioxidant compounds called flavonols which are good for the circulation and red wine increases levels of ‘good’ cholesterol in the blood.
