For many people, red wine is the one thing that makes switching to a healthy diet bearable. Now, however, it looks like wine might be crossed off the list of foods recommended in the Mediterranean diet.
A team of scientists has taken up the question. Commissioned by the European Union, they will try to determine red wine’s fate: does it belong in a diet marketed as healthy? Does a small but regular dose of red wine truly pose no harm to the body? Or is there a chance that even one or two glasses could ultimately lead to alcohol abuse?
It All Started with Debates on Safe Wine Consumption
The promotion of the Mediterranean diet’s benefits has long been accompanied by a debate over the safety of consuming small amounts of wine. Some researchers argue that there is no safe amount of alcohol and that complete abstinence is the best approach.
The European Research Council (ERC), an institution that funds scientific research in the EU, sponsored a four-year study of 10,000 Spaniards. The goal was to investigate how moderate wine consumption affects conditions such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes.
Leading the research is Dr. Miguel Martínez-González of the University of Navarra in Pamplona. He has been publishing articles about whether wine should be excluded from the Mediterranean diet.
The ERC’s choice of Dr. Martínez-González was no accident: he has previously expressed concerns that people often do not limit themselves to just one or two glasses, and he acknowledges that removing red wine from the Mediterranean diet could diminish the diet’s perceived benefits.
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Red wine in moderation has long been cited as a factor contributing to the longevity of Southern Europeans. Compounds found in grape skins are thought to help prevent heart disease, some types of cancer, and dementia, according to the Daily Mail.
The Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes vegetables, fruits, fish, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, olive oil, herbs, and spices, traditionally recommends one to two glasses of red wine per day with meals.
P.S. About three million people worldwide die each year from alcohol-related causes.
