Wine drinkers live longer. Previous studies have shown that wine had significantly lowered mortality from both coronary heart disease and cancer when compared with non-wine drinkers. In fact, wine drinkers reduced their risk of death by one-third compared to non-drinkers. People who drank beer and other alcohol had a 10 percent decrease in mortality compared to non-drinkers, so this group showed beneficial effects of moderate alcohol consumption, too, though not as much as the wine drinkers. (1)
Some Danish scientists were curious about what folks who drank beer and wine also bought so they began examining grocery receipts. For years, science had been grappling with the unexplained health benefits of wine. As mentioned above, wine drinkers seemed to be more resistant to coronary heart disease and certain kinds of cancer, but no one knew why. Some folks felt there was some magic secondary compound in wine (resveratrol was one). The Danish group wanted to know what those healthy wine drinkers were buying when they visited the supermarket.
All together they examined 3.5 million transactions from ninety-eight different supermarkets. And they found that wine drinkers didn't shop the same ways as beer drinkers. Wine buyers bought more olives, fruits and vegetables, poultry, cooking oil, and low fat cheese, milk, and meat than beer buyers. Beer buyers bought more ready cooked dishes, sugar, cold cuts, chips, pork, butter or margarine, sausages, lamb, and soft drinks than wine buyers. (2)
Another interesting finding was that wine buyers spent more than beer buyers, though people who bought both wine and beer spent most of all., Researchers also noted that wine drinkers tended to be better educated and wealthier than beer drinkers. (3)
However, beer has its positive aspects:
- - It's cheaper and more accessible than wine.
- - It's more nutritious than wine—unfiltered beer contains nearly all the B vitamins, several minerals, and as many antioxidants as wine (though different ones, since wine comes from grapes and beer is made with grains, mainly barely and hops).
- - It reduces heart disease- besides the fact already mentioned that moderate levels of any alcohol reduces heart disease including beer and wine, a 2001 Czech Republic study found that vitamin B6 in beer reduces the buildup of amino acid homocysteine in the blood, which has been linked to heart disease. (3)
Back to wine and the question about resveratrol, a 'miracle' compound found in grapes—that was supposed to do pretty much everything health wise. However, it didn't quite work out.
The most recent study showed that resveratrol from foods and beverages did not correlate with a lower chance of dying, cancer risk, heart disease risk, or with markers of inflammation.
R. D. Sembra and colleagues concluded, “A prospective study of nearly 800 older community-dwelling adults shows no association between urinary resveratrol metabolites and longevity. This study suggests that dietary resveratrol from Western diets in community-dwelling older adults does not have a substantial influence on inflammation, cardiovascular disease, cancer or longevity.” (4)
Beth Kitchin says she is not surprised. (5) Here are some reasons:
- - Many of the previous studies that have shown benefits from resveratrol have been done with rats. Rats are not humans—a fact often lost on those humans reporting on scientific studies and supplement makers.
- - Both the rat and the humans have used large doses of resveratrol from supplements—far more than we can possible get from foods and beverages. To match the colossal doses you'd have to chug something like 50,000 bottles of wine a day. (6)
So, if you are a drinker and you can stick to the recommended levels, wine is better, but both wine and beer have good health aspects.
Jack Dini
Livermore, CA
References
1. Gronbaek, Morten et al., “Type of alcohol consumed and mortality from all causes, coronary heart disease, and cancer,”
Annals of Internal Medicine, 133(6), 411, September 19, 2000
2. Ditte Johansen et al., “Food buying habits of people who buy wine or beer: cross sectional study,” BMJ, 332, 519, March 2, 2006
3. Jude Buglewicz, “Wine or beer: which is better for you?” focused-on-fitness.com. accessed August 22, 2015
4. R. D. Sembra, et al., “Resveratrol levels and all-cause mortality in older community-dwelling adults,” JAMA, May 12, 2014
5. Beth Kitchin, “Why I'm not surprised that dietary resveratrol may not be associated with living longer,”
The Kitchin Sink, Many 16, 2014
6. Michael Behar, “Faster. Higher. Squeakier.” Outside, February 2011
