To the cardiovascular benefits, Ramón Estruch, president of FIVIN, adds that one drink a day reduces the incidence of breast cancer
Ramón Estruch, president of FIVIN (Foundation for Wine and Nutrition Research) has presented at the headquarters of the DOCa Rioja Regulatory Council the conclusions of the International Lifestyle, Diet, Wine and Health Congress, held in Toledo at the end of 2023, about the health benefits of moderate wine consumption according to scientific evidence and according to recognized experts in nutrition and medicine.
Estruch, one of the most respected figures in research on the Mediterranean diet, explained his perspective on how moderate wine consumption – between 10 and 15 grams of alcohol – can be integrated in a healthy and balanced way into a lifestyle beneficial for the body. welfare. “Wine is a fundamental pillar of the Mediterranean diet. It is considered that 20% of the beneficial effects of the Mediterranean diet are due to the moderate consumption of wine, but some notes must be made here. “Wine has to be consumed in moderation and within a healthy eating pattern.”
At the Toledo congress, more than 30 international researchers endorsed with their studies a dietary and social pattern that has been called ‘the Mediterranean lifestyle’. It became clear that “What we have learned for years is that you don’t really consume wine alone. Wine is consumed with a meal and is consumed in context. So, what is most valued today would be the lifestyle, which would include diet, physical activity and social or psychosocial well-being.”
‘J-curve’
The president of FIVIN recalled that scientific studies corroborate the existence of the so-called ‘J Curve’, which establishes a relationship between moderate wine consumption and a decreased risk of mortality. This relationship suggests that those who enjoy wine in moderation have a longer life expectancy than those who abstain from or consume it in excess, a finding of considerable scientific importance.
At a cardiovascular level, “The evidence is very strong that moderate consumption of alcohol and wine, as well as other biotic compounds, which are polyphenones, actually have this protective effect at the cardiovascular level”. As far as cancer is concerned, “We have been able to see that wine consumed within the Mediterranean diet, moderately in women, reduces the incidence of breast cancer. But wine outside the Mediterranean diet, that is, with a non-Mediterranean eating pattern or alone, increases its incidence, therefore, the context in wine consumption and cancer is essential.”
In this sense, remember that “When the effect of the Mediterranean diet and cancer has been analyzed, it has been seen that the Mediterranean diet protects against breast cancer and when it has been analyzed within the components of the Mediterranean diet, alcohol, which would be wine, would be the “which has a more protective effect.” Wine has alcohol, which in excess is carcinogenic, but it has polyferons, which are bioactive compounds that protect against diseases thanks to an anti-inflammatory effect, prevent degenerative diseases, heart attack and also protect against cancer.
The important thing is to accompany it with a healthy diet “and better at dinner. Two-thirds of myocardial infarctions occur at night, when the clotting circadian rhythm is different. Wine has an effect called clot-dissolving fibrinolysis. If you drink wine with the probability of a nocturnal heart attack is lower, although these studies are few to make global recommendations.”
Truthful and responsible communication
The purpose of the meeting held at the Regulatory Council was to offer a rigorous, balanced and science-based vision of the binomial wine and health, in a context marked by the rise of anti-alcohol campaigns and movements that, although they pursue a preventive objective, do not They always distinguish between alcoholic beverages and their differentiated effects on health when consumed in moderation.
From FIVIN and the Regulatory Council of the DOCa Rioja remember that wine as a product is protected by Law 24/2003 on Vine and Wine, which considers wine as a natural food and must also encourage its promotion by the Administration, informing about the benefits of wine as a food within the Mediterranean diet within the framework of the European Union.
According to Ezquerro, president of the Regulatory Council of the DOCa Rioja“as the first Denomination of Origin of wine in Spain, which accounts for more than 27% of the volume share of quality wine marketed in Spain, it seems tremendously unfair not only for us, but also for the consumer that inaccurate information is disseminated of the true implications of moderate wine consumption on health.”
The Foundation for Wine and Nutrition Research – FIVIN is a non-profit entity dedicated to researching the effects of moderate wine consumption on health and its main mission is to communicate to the medical community all those studies that study the effects of wine and its components on health. FIVIN has an independent scientific committee that analyzes all the relevant studies that are archived on the website (lacienciadelvino.com) and publishes informative dossiers periodically.
Subscribe to our newsletter for free. Click here!
