Go red!

Red

Red wine is my new found love.  I discovered her (I refer to wine as a her because female characteristics are so much more appealing than male) last September whilst on a wine tour.  Prior to that ocassion I had only a small liking to red wine in the right circumstances but since then I have been overwelmed by Red's aroma, body and texture and my pallet craves the taste.

So whats the deal with red wine??  Is it bad for us?  Should we steer away from alcohol to be healthy?  According to "Whats good for you", "Diet doctors" and my nutrition dictionary (that can be found in a previous blog), as well as many other sources, red wine IS GOOD.  Moderate drinkers are generally much healthier than those who binge (duhrrrrrr) but also those who choose not to drink.  So why is this?

Benefits
"Many studies investigated the benefits of red wine suggested that moderate amount of red wine (one drink a day for women and two drinks a day for men) lowers the risk of heart attack for people in middle age by ~ 30 to 50 percent. It is also suggested that alcohol such as red wine may prevent additional heart attacks if you have already suffered from one. Other studies also indicated that red wine can raise HDL cholesterol (the Good cholesterol) and prevent LDL cholesterol (the Bad cholesterol) from forming. Red wine may help prevent blood clots and reduce the blood vessel damage caused by fat deposits. Indeed, studies showed that people from the Mediterranean region who regularly drank red wine have lower risks of heart disease".

Obviously red wine is filled with antioxidants which unfortunately white wine lacks because they are found in the grape's skin.  It also contains phenolic constituents, particularly resveratrol and the flavonoids.

So drink red... because its fantastic! :P