Which wine is better? Does the variety, the region or even the slope matter? When it comes to tastes, each of us must decide for ourselves. But when it comes to health, it is quite different from a scientific point of view.
Where it flows, it heals. Or not?
Alcohol and health? The experts are clear. Can’t recommend it. Alcohol clearly increases the risk of cancer, damages the liver and impairs sleep. But, let’s face it. Most of us will have a glass anyway. For dinner, at a party, sometimes just “on the nerves”. Is it better to go for white or red?
Experts talk about the so-called moderate consumption. For women, this amount represents one glass a day, for men two. Above this threshold, a pleasant ritual becomes a health risk.
Even moderate consumption is not strictly healthy, but it is considered tolerable and to a certain extent the body can get some benefits from it. It happens associated with a lower incidence of cardiovascular diseases. But this effect is probably related to other factors, especially diet and lifestyle.
Even though we are more of a beer nation, the tradition of growing wine is several hundred years long here as well. The owner of the vineyard spoke about pinot noir in Czech vineyards.
Red and White: What’s the Difference?
At first glance, it’s the color, even if wines like Tramin red torment the uninitiated. What does science say about the differences between wines?
subjected to the scrutiny of more than a hundred studies. Are you interested in the result? People who drink wine had about a quarter lower risk of heart disease than those who don’t drink wine at all, according to this summary. But no significant difference was shown between red and white.
On the other hand, the authors state that studies often do not differentiate between white and red. In practice, it probably doesn’t matter so much about the color, but probably more about the quantity.
Resveratrol is in red
Red wine has one trump card that has been talked about for years. It’s resveratrol. Antioxidant from grape skinswhich the plant creates as its own shield against fungi. In wine, it acts as a small bonus, i.e. it helps to reduce “bad” cholesterol and supports the elasticity of blood vessels.
Resveratrol was until recently considered a wonder substance because the first experiments on animals indicated the activation of the “longevity gene SIRT 1” and it fit nicely into the story of the French paradox, i.e. that the French have a lower incidence of heart disease precisely because of wine.
But this effect has not been confirmed in humansstudy results are mixed and inconclusive. The amount of resveratrol in a glass of wine is so small that it adds nothing measurable. More recent research shows that it wasn’t a single substance that protected French hearts, but lifestyle, diet and other factors, so the initial hype around resveratrol just didn’t last.
What about calories?
Although wine is not exactly hard to drink, it is certainly not light in terms of calories. One glass of dry white has around 100 to 120 caloriesred a few more. And with each one, the numbers add up faster than you can fill up. , which the body does not have time to burn, especially when we drink in the evening. So even an “innocent” drink after work can be what’s holding back your weight loss efforts.
“I do not forbid alcohol or wine to my customers, but if they want results, there is no choice but moderation, and I definitely recommend abstinence during the reduction phase of training”personal trainer and nutritionist Pavel Šusták from the former Gold’s Gym says about the issue of alcohol and reduction diets.
Taste, customs and Czech reality
Czechs drink an average of almost 20 liters of wine per year per person. That’s about 26 bottles for each adult. More white is drunk than red, but the differences are blurring.
Red has a fuller taste, more tannins and goes well with meats. White is lighter, fresh, with acidity and ideal with fish or salad. However, in the end it is about the preferences of each of us. And even science cannot yet recommend one more than the other.
