Red wine is a rich source of biologically active phytochemicals, chemicals found in plants. Particular compounds called polyphenols found in red wine-such as catechins and resveratrol-are thought to have anti oxidant or anti cancer properties.

1. What are polyphenols and how do they prevent cancer?

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.

Polyphenols have been found to have antioxidant properties. Antioxidants are substances that protect cells from oxidative damage caused by molecules called free radicals. These chemicals can damage important parts of cells, including proteins, membranes and DNA. Cellular damage caused by free radicals has been implicated in the development of cancer. Research on the antioxidants found in red wine has shown that they may help inhibit the development of certain cancers.

2. What is resveratrol and how does it prevent cancer?

Resveratrol is 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 irradiation. Red wine contains high levels of resveratrol, as do grapes, raspberries, peanuts and other plants.

Resveratrol has been shown to reduce tumor incidence in animals by affecting one or more stages of cancer development. It has been shown to inhibit growth of many types of cancer cells in culture. Evidence also exists that it 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. This protein affects cancer cell growth and metastasis. Resveratrol is also an antioxidant.

3. What have red wine studies found?

The cell and animal studies of red wine have examined effects in several cancers including leukemia, skin, breast and prostate cancers. Scientists are studying resveratrol to learn more about its cancer preventive activities. Recent evidence from animal studies suggests this anti-inflammatory compound may be an effective chemopreventive agent in three stages of the cancer process: initiation, promotion and progression.

Research studies published in the International Journal of Cancer show that drinking a glass of red wine a day may cut a man's risk of prostate cancer in half and that the protective effect appears to be strongest against the most aggressive forms of the disease. It was also seen that men who consumed four or more 4-ounce glasses of red wine per week have a 60 percent lower incidence of the more aggressive types of prostate cancer.

However, studies of the association between red wine consumption and cancer in humans are in their initial stages. Although consumption of large amounts of alcoholic beverages may increase the risk of some cancers, there is growing evidence that the health benefits of red wine are related to its nonalcoholic components.          

   ~ National Cancer Institute Fact Sheet ~

Belief in the medicinal value of wine is as old as wine itself. The Pharmacopoeia of the United States of America, sixth decennial revision, published in 1882, has listings for 14 different preparations of wine, from vinum album, or white wine, made "from the unmodified juice of the grape, freed from seeds, stems, and skins," to vinum rubrum, or red wine, made "by fermenting the juice of colored grapes in presence of their skins."

The deep, beautiful purple-red color of red wine is produced by a substance called anthocyanin, which is found in the skin of the grape. In addition to the color of red wine, we can thank anthocyanins for the deep red-purple-black color of black olives; and the berry-red color of strawberries, cherries, and raspberries.

Anthocyanin is one of the four main groups of chemicals that together are called flavonoids. Found in many plants and especially in deeply colored fruits and vegetables, flavonoids are important chemicals in plants.

Drink in the Flavonoids

Research has shown many potential medical uses for flavonoids. For example, they regulate cell growth, function as antioxidants, reduce inflammation, and prevent blood clots.

Red wine may also reduce oxidative stress caused by increased blood glucose levels after meals, according to Antonio Ceriello, MD, and associates. In a research letter published in the December 1999 issue of Diabetes Care, Dr. Ceriello and associates presented data showing that consumption of two 5-ounce glasses of red wine with a meal by subjects with type 2 diabetes significantly reduced the compounds produced by the test meal that could cause vascular damage by the mechanism of "oxidative stress." (Oxidation of LDL "bad" cholesterol causes fatty buildup in the arteries.)

Sheldon H. Gottlieb, MD, FACC, is a cardiologist at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center, Department of Cardiology, in Baltimore, Md. He also directs the Diabetes–Heart Failure Program at Johns Hopkins HealthCare, LLC.     

   ~ American Diabetes Association ~

Red Wine Protects The Prostate, Research Suggests

ScienceDaily (May 26, 2007) — Researchers have found that men who drink an average of four to seven glasses of red wine per week are only 52% as likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer as those who do not drink red wine, reports the June 2007 issue of Harvard Men’s Health Watch. In addition, red wine appears particularly protective against advanced or aggressive cancers.

Researchers in Seattle collected information about many factors that might influence the risk of prostate cancer in men between ages 40 and 64, including alcohol consumption. At first the results for alcohol consumption seemed similar to the findings of many earlier studies: There was no relationship between overall consumption and risk.

But the scientists went one step further by evaluating each type of alcoholic beverage independently. Here the news was surprising—wine drinking was linked to a reduced risk of prostate cancer. And when white wine was compared with red, red had the most benefit. Even low amounts seemed to help, and for every additional glass of red wine per week, the relative risk declined by 6%.

Why red wine? Doctors don’t know. But much of the speculation focuses on chemicals—including various flavonoids and resveratrol—missing from other alcoholic beverages. These components have antioxidant properties, and some appear to counterbalance androgens, the male hormones that stimulate the prostate.

Many doctors are reluctant to recommend drinking alcohol for health, fearing that their patients might assume that if a little alcohol is good, a lot might be better. The Harvard Men’s Health Watch notes that men who enjoy alcohol and can drink in moderation and responsibly may benefit from a lower risk of heart attack, stroke, diabetes, and cardiac death.

Red Wine Can Help Maintain Immune System, UF Researcher Finds

ScienceDaily (Aug. 6, 1999) — GAINESVILLE---Unlike many other alcoholic beverages, red wine does not suppress the immune system, according to preliminary studies at the University of Florida. While red wine has been reported to aid in the prevention of coronary heart disease and some cancers, no one has studied whether its alcohol content might offset any benefits, said food science and human nutrition researcher Susan Percival.

So Percival, who specializes in nutrition and immunity, conducted a study to find out if red wine affects the immune system. Her research shows that the circulating white blood cells that fight infection are not helped -- or hurt -- by red wine.

"There's been a lot of publicity lately on the health benefits of red wine, but we also know that alcohol suppresses the immune system," said Percival, a researcher in UF's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. "So we wanted to find out whether red wine had a suppressive effect on immunity."

In the eight-week study, laboratory mice were divided into four groups of drinkers: teetotalers, who drank only water; wine drinkers, with one group getting cabernet sauvignon and the other getting muscadine wine; and ethanol drinkers, who received alcohol in concentrations equivalent to that in the wine.

The study was designed to replicate moderate alcohol consumption for people, so the mice were given the equivalent of two or three glasses, or servings, of wine or alcohol per day.

After the mice had established a drinking habit, Percival made the mice mildly ill to see how their immune systems would respond under the influence of alcohol.

The mice who were drinking ethanol experienced a suppressed immune response, while the mice who drank wine maintained normal immunity.

"We found that the animals that consumed straight ethanol had lower levels of white blood cells than any other group," Percival said. "However, the same amount of alcohol, consumed as red wine, resulted in no suppression of the immune response.

"What this suggests," Percival said, "is that there's something in red wine that prevents suppression of the immune system. So it's OK to drink a glass of red wine. You can get the benefits without any apparent harm on immunity."

Percival said there are many different compounds in red wine and in grapes that could be contributing to the results, but she has not yet pinpointed which specific compound aids in maintaining normal immunity. The rich pigment in red wine is due to antioxidants and blood tests showed that mice who drank wine had two times more antioxidant capacity than the animals who drank ethanol or water.

Percival used cabernet sauvignon and muscadine wine to see if the variety of wine affected the immune response. The cabernet grapes came from California and the muscadine grapes from a local vineyard in North Central Florida. The wines were made at the food science and human nutrition department by researcher Charlie Sims.

Percival said she found the comparison of muscadine and cabernet inconclusive. Tests of enzymes in the liver, which detoxifies alcohol for the body, showed some differences between how the liver processed the two wines. Percival said she hopes to do further studies to determine whether muscadine might have greater protective effects because of its greater concentration of antioxidants.

"I was surprised to find no immune system suppression from the red wine, and we still don't know what it is that prevented the suppression," Percival said. "So we'd like to take this further and eventually look at this process in people."

Lower Your Cholesterol

Alcohol also can have a very powerful effect and increase HDL "good" cholesterol by 20% if used moderately and in the context of a healthy diet along with regular physical activity, says Rimm. Higher HDL levels are linked to lower risks of heart disease.

"The research evidence points to ethanol, or the alcohol component, of beer, wine, or spirits as the substrate that can help lower cholesterol levels, increase 'good' HDL cholesterol," he says.

Boost Your Brain

A recent study shows a boost in brain power for women who enjoy a little alcohol. The study, published in the Jan. 20 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, evaluated more than 12,000 women aged 70-81. Moderate drinkers scored better than teetotalers on tests of mental function. Researchers found a boost in brainpower with one drink a day. Moderate drinkers had a 23% reduced risk of mental decline compared with nondrinkers.

By Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH, RD, LD          

Reviewed by Michael W. Smith, MD

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