Red wine consumption and cardiovascular health 

The authors of a review published in the Journal Molecules, state that wine is a popular alcoholic beverage that has been consumed for hundreds of years. Benefits from moderate alcohol consumption have been widely supported by the scientific literature and, in this line, red wine intake has been related to a lesser risk for coronary heart disease (CHD). Experimental studies and meta- analyses have mainly attributed this outcome to the presence in red wine of a great variety of polyphenolic compounds such as resveratrol, catechin, epicatechin, quercetin, and anthocyanin. Resveratrol is considered the most effective wine compound with respect to the prevention of CHD because of its antioxidant properties. The mechanisms responsible for its putative cardioprotective effects would include changes in lipid profiles, reduction of insulin resistance, and decrease in oxidative stress of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C).
The review summarises the accumulated evidence correlating moderate red wine consumption with prevention of CHD by focusing on the different mechanisms underlying this relationship. Furthermore, the chemistry of wine as well as chemical factors that influence the composition of the bioactive components of red wine are also discussed.
The paper concludes: In the last decades, several human and animal studies have indicated that moderate red wine consumption has beneficial effects on health. Phenolic compounds present in red wine have shown antioxidant and anti- inflammatory properties, being able to reduce insulin resistance and to exert a beneficial effect by decreasing oxidative stress. As a consequence, a clear effect on the reduction of risk factors and the prevention of cardiovascular diseases have been observed. Different mechanisms are involved in the cardioprotective effects of moderate red wine consumption: while alcohol appears to be responsible for increasing plasma HDL-C, the polyphenolic component may play a key role in the reduction of T2D incidence and LDL oxidation. In light of these considerations, a moderate intake of red wine may produce cardioprotective effects. However, more in-depth knowledge is required in order to understand the molecular basis of the potential mechanisms involved.
Source: Red Wine Consumption and Cardiovascular Health. Luigi Castaldo , Alfonso Narváez , Giulia Graziani, Anna Gaspari , Giovanni Di Minno, Alberto Ritieni. Molecules 2019, 24(19), 3626; open access.