Beautiful Holiday present from my son – 2 bottles of red wine, one with family photo and the second my boy and his girlfriend.
Red wine is a component of the Mediterranean diet crowned the heart healthy diet by the American Heart Association. Moderate alcohol consumption by those in whom it is not contraindicated could promote longevity. One glass of wine a day by a female and 2 glasses a day by a male is associated with reduced rates of heart disease in patients without diabetes. It is associated with reduced mortality (death), increased level of the good cholesterol (the high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, also called HDL-C). This moderate alcohol intake is also associated with reduced triglycerides (TG) concentrations, another bad cholesterol implicated with increased risk of heart disease, stroke and pancreatitis. Other beneficial effects of moderate alcohol intake include reduced fasting insulin level, and increased insulin sensitivity, and therefore, could consequently confer some (albeit not absolute) protection against development of type 2 diabetes.
There may be a slight increased risk of breast cancer in females by moderate alcohol consumption. Nonetheless, this increased mortality by breast cancer is offset by the cardiovascular and metabolic benefits leading to a reduced overall mortality.
Is alcohol for everyone? By all means NO! You should not be drinking alcohol if you are not of legal age (young brains exposed to alcohol may experience structural changes that could result in significant diminution of brain function such as decreased cognition, rational thinking, memory, poor school performance), if you have family history of alcoholism (because you may have inherited the gene for alcoholism), if you are pregnant (because it could cause anyone of several or all of the abnormalities in the newborn that constitute fetal alcohol syndrome), or you have poorly controlled blood pressure, moderate to significantly elevated blood triglycerides levels, liver disease, heart failure, pancreatitis, history of gout. It is always a good idea to check with your doctor to see if it is okay for you to drink.
