Two Glasses of Wine a Day

Filed in archive Wine News on October 16, 2006

....can keep a stroke at bay, or so says some Johns Hopkins University researchers. While the amount of red wine consumed may vary depending on weight, their findings indicate that drinking about a few glasses of red wine a day may help build cells which shield against the affects of strokes.

Here's all the scientific stuff from Red wine can help prevent stroke damage:

The study showed that resveratrol increases levels of an enzyme in the brain -- heme oxygenase -- that was already known to shield nerve cells from damage.

Dore said the beneficial effects associated with drinking a moderate amount of red wine could be explained by the fact the wine turns on the heme oxygenase anti-oxidant system.

"Red wine has been suggested for the heart. Here what we show is its special effect in stroke and pre-treatment," Dore said. "It suggests that prophylactic use of wine could work."

The fermentation process in wine-making boosts the concentration of resveratrol, Dore said.

But said more studies are needed to translate the findings from mice into humans.

The amount of wine that must be consumed in order to reap the benefits of the compound will vary depending on a person's weight and the concentration of resveratrol in the wine. But Dore said it will likely work out to about two glasses a day.