Although wine has accompanied mankind for centuries, it has only recently been known how beneficial it is to he alth, especially for the kidneys and heart. It is possible that it also protects us against cancer and some bacteria. Of course drunk in moderation and preferably red. Check what he alth-promoting properties wine has.

The he alth benefits of winehave been well documented. In the course of research that lasted 40 years (from 1960 to 2000), scientists from the Dutch University of Wageningen studied 1,400 men. It turned out that alcohol in a dose of 2 g a day prolonged life by an average of 2 years. It was noted that those who drankwinelived an average of 5 years longer than total abstainers. Of course, exceeding the daily dose shortens your life.

What does wine consist of?

Wine consists of over 100 different ingredients, the main one is water - its content reaches 90 percent. The most important is ethanol (ethyl alcohol), it is from 9 to 18 percent. There are also organic acids, aldehydes, esters, tannins, and sugars in wine. As this drink is made fromgrapes , it contains the same macro- and micronutrients: phosphorus, iron, trace amounts of zinc, copper and selenium. Due to the content of potassium, calcium, magnesium and sodium, wine has an alkaline-forming effect. It contains vitamins A, B, C, H and PP vitamins.

Worth knowing

How is white, red, and rose wine made?

Due to the sugar content, wines can be divided into dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet and sweet. A dry wine is one in which the yeast has fermented all the sugar in the grapes. Due to the color, we have white, rosé and red wines. But the color does not depend on the color of the grapes - white wine can also be made from dark grapes, as long as the skins are separated from the flesh of the fruit before maceration. Because white wine is made only from the juice squeezed from fresh grapes. When the grapes are crushed together with the skin, it produces ared wineor rosé wine. Maceration lasting a few hours causes the wine to turn pink, and a few weeks - red. It is the skin that hides the most valuable ingredients of grapes, which is why red wine is better in terms of he alth benefits than white wine.

Polyphenols contained in wine lower the level of bad cholesterol

Scientists have been bothered by the so-called the French paradox. It turns out that the French who drink exceptionallya lot of wine, they are less likely to die of coronary heart disease than their neighbors. The statistics are especially favorable for the people of southern France - who eat a lot of fish, oil, vegetables and drink the local wine. Studies have confirmed the beneficial effects of polyphenols for the heart - antioxidants that prevent the formation of cholesterol deposits on the walls of the vessels, have the ability to lower the level of bad cholesterol. They prevent platelets from sticking together, like salicylic acid contained in wine, which prevents the formation of blood clots. The alcohol in wine dilates the blood vessels, increasing blood flow. Greater permeability and elasticity of the vascular walls reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Red wine improves digestion

Wine improves appetite and increases the secretion of digestive enzymes. It helps in the digestion of fatty foods, which is why it is perfect for e.g. duck, goose, roast pork. People with excess acidity should drink wine containing more tannins, which protect the gastric mucosa and prevent the increased secretion of hydrochloric acid.

Wine supports anti-cancer effect

The tannins contained in wine, mainly anthocyanins, catechins and caffeic acid derivatives, have anti-cancer properties. Red wine has the most tannins, about 2 g per liter. The flavonoids contained in wine fight free radicals - molecules accused of being cancerous. The wine flavonoids are much more durable than the antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables! The discovery of recent years is the anti-cancerresveratrol- an organic chemical ingredient, which is especially abundant in the skin of grapes.

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Author: Time S.A

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Wine increases the risk of breast cancer?

Research into the anti-cancer properties of wine is contradictory. Some say that wine protects against cancer, while the others it increases the risk of cancer. The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) and the World Cancer Research Fund (WHR) have produced a report that shows that a glass of wine a day (about 10 grams of alcohol) increases the risk of cancer breasts. For womenbefore menopause, the risk is 5 percent higher, for postmenopausal women it is 9 percent higher. In total, the data of 12 million women were analyzed, including 260,000 cases of breast cancer.

Wine improves kidney function

Wine stimulates the work of the pancreas, adrenal glands, thyroid and sex glands, which increases energy. It affects the better transformation of proteins, sugars and fats. Gallstones and kidney stones are less common in people who drink wine regularly. Systematic drinking of about 200 ml of wine a day reduces the risk of kidney stones by as much as 40 percent. Thanks to its diuretic effect, wine increases the excretion of protein breakdown products, such as urea, ammonia, acids and mineral s alts.

Wine is bactericidal

Wine is antiseptic and bactericidal, and it is more effective than stronger alcohol. Experiments have shown that typhus bacteria die in the presence of alcohol 70%. after 30, and in a weak wine after 15 minutes. During other trials, it turned out that cholera bacteria died in the wine, andE. colistop reproducing in 6 percent. alcohol.

The dose that must not be exceeded without harm to he alth is 1-2 glasses of light wine a day for a completely he althy person. All alcohol is prohibited for pregnant women.

Italian scientists investigated the effects of wine onStreptococcus mutans , bacteria that attack teeth, andStreptococcus pyogenescausing throat infections. In order to eliminate the effects of alcohol (clearly bactericidal), the scientists removed the ethanol from the wine and repeated the test. It turned out that wine without alcohol also inhibits the growth of bacteria.

According to an expertTomasz Kolecki-Majewicz, sommelier

Why is there sulfur in the wine?

Sulfur compounds in wine prevent its oxidation. Sulfur dioxide inhibits the growth of bacteria or mold enzymes in the clusters, while helping to stop premature or excessive yeast growth. The amount of sulfur dioxide used depends on the condition of the grapes, the ambient temperature during transport from the vineyard and the rate of alcoholic fermentation. Nowadays, the wine itself is sulfated in 3 production stages - before fermentation, when the wine is still in the must phase, after the fermentation process is finished and before bottling, when sulfur is added to protect the wine against bacteria. Thus, sulfurization of wine serves not only its preservation, but without this process the wine would quickly lose its aroma, taste and color. Importantly, the amounts of sulfur compounds in wine are not higher than those found in raisins.

Winny savoir-vivre

  • Serve white wines at 8-12 ° C (the sweeter, thebetter chilled). Serve red wines at room temperature - but it doesn't mean 23 ° C. They should be 16-20 ° C.
  • The shape of the glasses is important - those for white wine are smaller (so that their contents do not heat up), while those for red wine are more bulky. We raise both of them to our lips by the leg, not by the bowl. We fill white wine glasses up to half the size, and red wine glasses - up to the widest diameter.
  • Strict rules of matching wines to dishes no longer apply. In the past, red wine was necessary for red meats, and only white for poultry and fish. However, the order is still important: white wines are served before red ones, young wines before the older ones, dry before sweet ones.

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