Wine, Beer, Food, Friends and Health

By Wendy Gordon

I recently visited a friend I hadn't seen in a long time, who proudly showed me his wine cellar: 1500 bottles of carefully cataloged red wines. A couple years before, a blood test revealed that my friend had a high cholesterol level, for which his doctor had given him a choice. Either he could go on a strict diet, or he could start drinking red wine.

To be sure, my friend is a bit obsessive (his new wine cellar complements his alphabetized music collection whose shelves fill the walls of another room), but drinking red wine sure sounds like a lot more fun than a "strict diet." Since my friend commenced his new drinking regimen, admittedly complemented by regular exercise and sensible eating habits, his cholesterol levels have dropped to normal.

Evidence supporting the positive effects of "moderate drinking" keep rolling in. The most dramatic results point to alcohol's role in reducing cardiovascular disease, especially the risk of heart attack or stroke. Other health benefits include lower risk of Alzheimer's disease, colds, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, kidney stones and ulcers. Studies in as wide ranging parts of the world as the U.S., China and Britain point to increased longevity among moderate drinkers. Studies show improved brain and muscle function in moderate drinkers. One of the most compelling studies was a study of twins.

The twins who drank one to two drinks per day scored higher on intelligence tests than those who did not drink. Many long-term epidemiological studies are muddled by the peculiar fact that moderate drinkers start out healthier than abstainers, with lower rates of obesity and degenerative illness.

When assessing the benefits of alcoholic beverages, it's important to distinguish between alcohol, the chemical compound, and the other constituents of alcoholic beverages, in particular wine and beer. The chemical compound alcohol decreases blood fibrinogen levels, lowering the risk of blood clotting and stroke. It also lowers inflammatory markers that play (still unclear) roles in preventing the genesis of heart disease, cancer and the other ailments noted above. By an as yet unknown mechanism, alcohol seems to raise levels of "good" HDL cholesterol. Alcohol acts as a potent natural antibiotic and antiviral. So even a shot of Everclear isn't without health benefits.

However, the greatest value by far comes from red wine, that staple of Mediterranean cultures. Red wine contains polyphenols, antioxidants found in the skin and seeds of grapes (skins are removed in making white wines, hence a lower polyphenol content). Alcohol extracts these polyphenols, which include catechin, epicatechin, gallic acid and reservatrol. While all antioxidants protect against oxidative cell damage, these compounds appear to be even more potent than the vitamins C and E. Catechins inhibit the growth of cancer cells and Reservatrol, a polyphenol produced as part of a plant's immune system, seems to reduce tumor growth by many measures (initiation, promotion and progression). Polyphenols also protect against early cellular changes linked to the genesis of atherosclerotic disease.

Polyphenols are not only found fresh grapes, but other foods such as broccoli, spinach, blueberries, raspberries, alliums (the onion/ garlic family), tea and chocolate. This begs the question: why not just make dietary changes and forget about the alcohol? The fact is that the chemical compound alcohol and the wine's antioxidants work in concert, more powerful together than apart. An interesting aside is a study, reported in the Journal of Science of Food and Agriculture, that showed how storing fruit (particularly strawberries and blueberries) in alcohol helps preserve their nutrient content. Bring on the strawberry daiquiris!

Moderate beer drinking also seems a healthy habit. Like other alcoholic beverages, it is linked to increased longevity for reasons not yet fully elucidated. Keep in mind that beer has been brewed almost as long as people have been cultivating crops, and is made from essentially healthy ingredients: hops, brewer's yeast, barley and malt. Beer is a good source of folate, niacin, magnesium and potassium. The folate in beer may lower blood homocysteine levels (linked to cardiovascular disease), LDL, and triglycerides. One beer a day has been shown to lower the risk of blood clots and improve mental health and bone density in women.

Dietary guidelines for Americans recommend no more than one drink per day for women and no more than two for men, but many studies allow for a higher rate of "moderate" consumption, up to four drinks per day. Generally speaking, moderate drinking means one to three drinks per day, depending on body size, sex (men can drink more than women) and individual alcohol tolerance. A "drink" is defined as five ounces of wine, 12 ounces of beer or 1.5 ounces of hard liquor. Drinking must be spaced out regularly. Binge drinking overwhelms the body's capacity to metabolize alcohol and is just as dangerous as chronic abuse.

A common definition of "heavy drinking" is 21 drinks a week for women (3 a day) and 35 for men (5 a day). Excessive drinking, as everyone knows, has many negative health consequences. Alcohol abuse leads to liver and pancreatic damage, and an increased risk of cancer in those organs. Many alcoholics eat poorly, a condition exacerbated by metabolic affects of alcohol such as interference with fat absorption and protein synthesis. Thiamine deficiencies, common in alcoholics, cause brain damage. Alcohol, especially when accompanied by poor eating habits, causes birth defects including fetal alcohol syndrome.

For some people, the risks of alcohol overshadow the benefits. Recovering alcoholics, indeed anyone with an addiction of any kind, should not drink. People with gout, pancreatic or liver disease should abstain. Diabetics must be careful of the sugar content of alcoholic beverages and individuals taking certain medications should be aware of possible negative interactions with alcohol.

Further, approximately one percent of the population, primarily asthmatics, are allergic to sulfites. Sulfites (sulfur dioxide) develop naturally at low levels during the process of fermentation. They are also added in by many wine makers during the fermentation stage to preserve a wine's character, flavor and color as well as to clean wine tanks. The FDA requires any wine with more than 10 ppm of sulfites (about what occurs naturally) to state "contains sulfites" on the label. Sweet white wines contain more sulfites that dry reds or whites.

Finally, while a lot of issues still remain to be addressed, one of the most significant benefits of "moderate drinking," to me, is the psychosocial aspect. Alcohol's effect on physical markers of stress is unclear, but a drink forces you to sit down, to chat, to relax. If a meal includes wine, you're more likely to linger. In most wine-drinking cultures, such as France, Italy and Spain, wine is always served with food. Despite the universality of alcohol consumption in these cultures, rates of alcohol abuse are extremely low. That's because they're enjoying alcohol in a time-tested, natural way, as something to be savored.

Wendy Gordon is a writer and restaurant reviewer who lives in Portland, Oregon. She has a Masters degree in Clinical Nutrition from the University of Chicago.