Red wine, the heart cure?

Trawling through the mounting investigations into the impact of
wine-drinking on heart health, Danish researchers confirm ongoing
findings that drinkers of wine benefit from its cardio-protective
effects, more so than those who drink beer or other spirits, and
may also live longer.

Further, the analysis that encompassed various international studies, suggests that any alcohol, in light to moderate intake, puts drinkers at lower risk for cardiovascular disease and death than non-drinkers.

But, they underline, the social status of the wine drinker may also play a key role.

"It is also known from a number of studies that wine drinkers in many cultures are from a higher socio-economic status and have a better diet than non-wine drinkers," said Professor Morten Grønbæk, author of the article, published in Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis.

This may be an important factor adding to the beneficial results of wine intake.

Nearly one in three annual global deaths, about 16.7 million, result from various forms of cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure is believed to be a contributory factor.

A string of studies suggest that the powerful antioxidant resveratrol found in red wine, could protect against the blood clots and possibly high cholesterol levels, both associated with heart conditions.

Targeting a burgeoning market, the food industry continues to roll out food products designed to tackle heart health.

Set to grow 7.6 per cent in the UK market alone, according to Datamonitor, these foods are slated to achieve sales of £145 million in the UK by 2007.