Red wine, heart disease, hungry shark and shining armor knight

What is special about wine? What makes it more effective in preventing coronary heart disease and other diseases that other forms of alcohol may cause?

In recent years, scientists have undoubtedly concluded that many human diseases, such as heart disease, cancer and aging processes, are caused or stimulated by a group of chemicals called free radicals, which are like hungry sharks. These highly charged little villains linger on the body and attack healthy cell membranes through a process called oxidation. In this case, there is even a knight in shiny armor who jumps into the rescue and clears the hungry little murderers. Our Crusaders' name is antioxidants.

Not too technical, the oxidation process in our body is vital to health. Without it, for example, we cannot extract energy from food. But if there are too many free radicals in our body, this can be harmful.

Our bodies have their own ability to defend against free radicals, and in the form of enzymes, they can turn hungry little sharks into harmless water. However, sometimes our body's natural defense mechanisms cannot cope. At other times, external events can cause a large increase in free radicals in our bodies, such as X-rays, cigarette smoke, and exposure to toxic substances. Sometimes, this surge in free radicals can overwhelm our defenses and diseases, such as the possibility of radiation sickness.

So what is the relationship between oxidation and free radicals and heart disease?

Low-density lipoprotein, commonly referred to as "bad" LDL, can penetrate and accumulate on the inner wall of an artery under certain conditions to form fatty streaks and plaques. Looking at it alone, LDL particles don't look so dangerous, however, when attacked by free radicals, they become dangerous and somewhat aggressive cells that can actually penetrate and damage the smooth inner walls of our arteries. This process is called oxidation. Oxidized LDL is known to be the chief culprit in stimulating atherosclerosis, heart disease and stroke.

Antioxidants, as the name suggests [antioxidants] can help stop the oxidation process, which is the result of free radicals doing their stuff. Most antioxidant research is done on vitamins [A, E, beta carotene], but much has been done on the health benefits of red wine. Although most studies on red wine are related to coronary heart disease, it seems that the benefits of wine do not stop there.

Red wine and coronary heart disease

Red wines contain a variety of flavonoids; these chemicals give the wine its unique taste and characteristics that make it unique. Many of these flavonoids are like antioxidants. Perhaps the pioneer of wine research was carried out by Serge Renaud, who discovered the French public opinion, who believed that wine was a necessary factor in protecting the people of southern France from a high-fat diet and eventually coronary heart disease. Even if these people do eat a lot of high-fat cheese, bolognese and salami, their heart disease incidence is the lowest in the world.

Another study by Professor Gray of the University of Bern, Switzerland, is statistical rather than practical, focusing on the World Health Organization's low, medium and high coronary heart disease [CHD] mortality data.

What did he find? From the perspective of high mortality areas, Finland and Scotland, the middle area includes Ireland, and the low CHD areas include Spain, Italy and France. He then compared the rate of heart attack with the level of antioxidants in male blood samples living in these areas.

Vitamin E and heart disease

He found it very interesting and the results showed that high levels of antioxidants, especially vitamin E, were consistent with low mortality from heart disease. In addition, his findings show that vitamin E levels in predicting coronary heart disease are 94% higher than cholesterol levels or blood pressure data! In addition to diet, there are few [if any] wines in high CHD areas, while low areas are traditionally wines most of the time.

The two studied cities certainly look strange; Glasgow in Scotland and Toulouse in France show many similarities, but there are many differences. Prisoners in both cities ate large amounts of high-fat foods, traditionally seldom exercising and drinking. Surprisingly, although Glasgow's CHD rate is the highest in the world, fortunately the Tulu people have the lowest number. Traditionally, beer and spirits are Glasgow's preferred drinks, while people in Toulouse drink red wine.

Others suggest that moderate drinking is beneficial, and drinking at the bar in the evening is harmful. It saw Southern Europeans not drinking, but it was also a happy companion for their meal.

At first, large heart institutions such as the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association ignored antioxidants and dismissed wine. Although it is clear that doctors suggest that his patients may be at risk of starting to drink alcohol, it is strange that they pretend to ignore the evidence for so many years. Ok, now even if they don't advocate taking vitamin tablets; now they have realized antioxidants and free radicals. However, according to the American Heart Association, "There is no scientific evidence that drinking wine or any other alcoholic beverage can replace traditional measures. Stroke." Just ask yourself who will pay for such research. “The purpose of clinical trials is to show one thing. Better than the other, or whether a substance is good for health. “The cost of clinical trials is so high that only the pharmaceutical industry has enough financial impact to invest – The investment is correct. It was a surprise.

The truth about red wine and heart disease was originally published on Spring