The Mediterranean diet is the classic template for a proven healthy approach to eating. So its characteristics has been analyzed and prodded by those looking for a better lifestyle. What’s been completely dissected is realizing it’s constant elements, of what this diet offers.
For some, the greatest benefit is it allows the moderate consumption of red wine as a staple, as it’s one of the foundations of this eating behavior. This provided it’s combined with the components of its other properties, such as meat, vegetables, olive oil, fruits and nuts, and legumes, and of course the benefits of resveratrol found in the red wine.
What’s known is that a diet which contains moderate amounts of alcohol consumption such as red wine, is associated with a reduction of Type 2 diabetes.
There are also suggestions that drinking wine can potentially do is decrease fasting insulin concentration, which lowers blood sugar levels.
Benefits Of Red Wine
Further studies show that its consumption also protects against the development of kidney disease, which is a dreaded complication that’s associated with contributing to other health issues, while reducing the development of cardiovascular disease by 30% percent.
Following the Mediterranean diet injected with wine also proved to yield other benefits. That what it’s consumption did was notably increased the good cholesterol, which is the high-density lipoprotein, while simultaneously decreasing the bad LDL cholesterol ratio.
For Improved Health
Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disease that’s characterized by inflammation, while being associated with a wide range of other devastating complications. Type 2 diabetes accounts for around 90% percent of all cases.
The good news is the suggestion which continues to point towards the correlation between red wine consumption, this when associated with the other components of the Mediterranean diet, to reduce these major health issues.
Other Types Of Alcohol
What was also investigated was if there was a difference in terms of outcome, this between other alcoholic beverages such as beer, the wine, and distilled spirits.
It was found that both beer and distilled spirits did indeed show a decrease in developing Type II diabetes in particular, but it was only around 5% percent.
However, wine consumption was much more impressive, as the overall reduction when it came to the risk of lowering the disease, was around 15% percent.
The Content Of Red Wine
While the precise mechanism on why this occurs remains elusive, what especially red wine does is contains additional healthy compounds, including a variety of powerful antioxidants and polyphenols such as resveratrol.
What testing has shown is that it’s especially this antioxidant, is what responds in the small intestines, this to activate the beneficial enzyme which is known as Sirtuin1.
The Resveratrol Effect
What this particular enzyme does is deacetylates proteins, which contributes to cellular regulation. After activation, what triggers are the neurons in the gut and the liver, which is eventually fed back to the brain. What this neural arc also does is decreases blood glucose.
Similar to other fermented products, what wine also contains are compounds which has shown to directly impact gut microbiome, while suppressing the development of Trimethylamine-N-oxide or TMAO.
What high levels of TMAO does is directly correlates to the potential risk of developing chronic kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.
The Need To Wine
What’s been focused on is especially the naturally occurring compounds which are found in red grapes, along with other especially colorful fruits and vegetables, which functions as potent antioxidants.
What the experts has identified to date are over 6,000 different types of antioxidants. As a general rule, antioxidants are usually found in the pigments of fresh fruits and vegetables, the more colorful that the food is, the richer it is.
The Value Of Antioxidants
What makes antioxidants particularly valuable is their ability to prevent immediate damage to the cells in the body, while preventing aging of the various organ systems, particularly in the brain and the heart.
Antioxidants will do their work in the body, this by disarming the cell-damaging free radicals, which are the wildly reactive rogue molecules of oxygen which damages the membrane which covers the cells, along with the DNA which contains the cell’s basic operating instructions.
Free Radical Damage
These unwanted free radicals are implicated particularly towards heart disease, this because what they do is oxidizes the “bad” cholesterol, which directly leads to hardened of the arteries.
By damaging the genetic machinery of the cells, what free radicals also are thought to do is contribute to the development of other serious health issues, along with degenerative conditions such as Parkinson’s disease.
These free radicals will enter our bodies, this externally through pollution, by eating fried foods, and the normal metabolic processing of the body.
Wining For Life
The benefit is that red wine can potentially increase one’s lifespan. Resveratrol is also only one of several antioxidants that’s known to give character to red wine. It’s also known to contain a genetic switch, which controls how quickly one ages as well.
So What’s The Dose
So what’s been established is that red wine is indeed good for us, as it can serve our health well. So the question remains what’s the most ideal amount to consume.
This is where there’s debate, this because what also needs to be taken onto account is gender, body weight, and genetics, which all plays a role.
Generally, the ideal optimal amount appears to be around 1 to 2 glasses per day for women, and 2 to 3 glasses for men. This is based on the standard single glass containing around 5 fluid ounces of wine.
So when it comes to a healthier lifestyle, this by enjoying the titillating tastes and textures along with a plethora of other benefits, this when adopting the Mediterranean diet, is enjoying red wine.