Whether you consider yourself a connoisseur, novice, or somewhere in between, get ready to raise a glass to your health. Today is Red Wine Day!
Red wine is produced all over the world and available in many wonderful varieties- and Spec’s has hundreds of red wines so you can find the perfect bottle for any occasion. From Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir to Beaujolais Nouveau, Malbec, Zinfandel or Chianti, red wine not only tastes great, it’s believed to be good for your health too!
FIGHTS DEMENTIA
Red wine helps protect against Alzheimer’s Disease– Resveratrol is found in red wine, it is also sold in stores as a supplement because it helps improve memory and enhance brain function in the elderly.
PREVENT LIVER DISEASE
Drinking wine can reduce your risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease by half, flying in the face of conventional thinking around alcohol and liver disease. It has to be wine though.
PROTECT AGAINST PROSTATE CANCER
Men who drink 4-7 glasses of red wine a week are only about half as likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer as those who don’t drink red wine, according to Harvard Men’s Health Watch.
PREVENT BREAST CANCER
Most alcoholic drinks can increase your risk of breast cancer, but researchers from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center (USA) found red wine can have the opposite effect. Chemicals found in the seeds of red grapes reduce estrogen levels in pre-menopausal women, while increasing their testosterone levels — the perfect cocktail for a lower risk of developing breast cancer.
MANAGE YOUR WEIGHT
Red wine helps you lose weight- In a 13-year study by Harvard University, individuals who drank half a bottle of wine a day had a 70 percent reduced risk of obesity, compared to non-drinkers.
PROTECT AGAINST LUNG CANCER AND IMPROVE LUNG FUNCTION
Red wine consumption may reduce your risk of lung cancer according to Chun Chao, Ph.D., who said, ‘An antioxidant component in red wine may be protective of lung cancer, particularly among smokers.’ (Giving up smoking is always a better option.) Drinking a beer or more each day, however, can increase your chances of getting lung cancer.
PREVENT BOWEL CANCER
Scientists from the University of Leicester (UK) have reported that the resveratrol in red wine can also have a marked effect on cancer risk. They found drinking two glasses of red wine a day can reduce the rate of bowel tumors by around 50%.
SLOW THE AGING PROCESS
Although monks have believed for over a thousand years in wine’s anti-aging properties, the theory is now backed by science. Harvard Medical School researchers have found that red wine’s magical compound resveratrol and the SIRT1 gene, also found in red wine, are definitely linked to increased health and a longer life span.
PREVENT BLINDNESS
Overgrown blood vessels in the eye can cause diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration, but the good news is that red wine can stop that blood vessel growth in its tracks, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine. The resveratrol found in red wine is the compound responsible for arresting the blood vessel growth (it’s also in grapes, blueberries, peanuts, and some other plants, but that’s not important right now).
HEALTHY SKIN
Red wine promotes healthy skin- Resveratrol is an antioxidant found in red wine. It has been proven to help clear skin, limit acne outbreaks and prevent new bacteria from forming.
