Oh well, not changing my mind. Our wine parties vastly increase my social connections and thus are too important for reducing my dementia risk to follow this idea.
Red wine's health benefits are misleading. Here's why
Many people believe that sipping a glass of red wine can lead to some impressive health benefits. That’s because previous studies have suggested that red wine consumed in moderation is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer, as well as with increased life expectancy. But don’t break out the corkscrew just yet.
Alcohol, regardless of what type, isn’t that good for you. A 2023 systematic review and meta-analysis published in the journal JAMA Network Open that looked at the drinking habits of nearly 5 million people found that consuming even low amounts of alcohol (about two drinks) on a daily basis was not significantly associated with a lower risk of dying, while drinking more than that actually increased that risk.
As the World Health Organization succinctly stated in January 2023: “No level of alcohol consumption is safe for our health.” In fact, the WHO has placed alcohol in the highest risk group — which also includes asbestos, radiation and tobacco — as a toxic substance that can cause at least seven types of cancer, including breast and colon.
“Moreover, there are no studies that would demonstrate that the potential beneficial effects of light and moderate drinking on cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes outweigh the cancer risk associated with these same levels of alcohol consumption for individual consumers,” according to the WHO.
And yet, red wine is still touted as the healthiest option behind the bar. Here, experts weigh in on the common misconceptions behind red wine.
When did red wine become a healthy indulgence?
“The idea that drinking a glass of red wine can have heart health benefits stems back to a 1991 episode of 60 Minutes where Morley Safer spoke about the ‘French paradox,’” Heather Hausenblas, chief executive officer and founder of Wellness Discovery Labs and scientific researcher specializing in health psychology, tells Yahoo Life.
The term “French paradox” was coined by scientists and is based on the concept that the French can consume a high-fat diet and drink red wine and still have lower rates of cardiovascular disease compared to Americans. Safer suggested the red wine might be helping to “flush fatty deposits” out of the body.
“After that episode aired, sales of red wine skyrocketed,” points out Hausenblas.
But there are several problems with this conclusion, Jessica Marcus, an integrative and functional registered dietitian nutritionist and owner of Veda Nutrition, tells Yahoo Life. “First of all, the studies supporting the idea that alcohol is beneficial are based on observational data,” she explains. “It’s really hard to draw causal conclusions with these types of studies because there are too many confounding variables, or other potential factors, that could be responsible for the results.”
Marcus offers the example of concluding that living in Colorado is associated with an increased risk of breaking your leg compared to living in Arizona. “However, there are probably more people skiing in Colorado than in Arizona, and skiers are more likely to break their leg than nonskiers. That’s a confounding variable.”
Both Hausenblas and Marcus list several confounding variables in the French paradox, such as the French consuming less sugar and fewer processed foods, eating more fruits and vegetables, walking more often, having lower rates of obesity and having stronger social connections compared to Americans.
“And to further complicate this picture, there is evidence that French doctors have underreported heart disease over the years,” says Marcus. “It’s also now known that many of these studies had ties to the alcohol industry, which definitely begs the question of their validity.”
What about the antioxidants in red wine?
Resveratrol — a substance found in red grapes, and therefore, in red wine — acts the way antioxidants do, by helping to protect the body from free radicals, which cause cell damage that can lead to chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease and cancer. It’s this one nutritional tidbit that has helped further promote the health benefits of drinking a glass of red wine while labeling other spirits as indulgences — and even vices.
“But the evidence suggesting red wine helps prevent heart disease is pretty weak,” says Marcus. “The resveratrol studies have been done in mice, and you’d have to drink so much red wine to get the therapeutic amount — over 100 glasses! — that it clearly isn’t a viable argument.”
Hausenblas points out that other foods contain resveratrol, including blueberries, cranberries, peanuts, pistachios and dark chocolate. “And if you take a look at some of the supplements that have resveratrol, most of them don't even contain grapes,” she explains. The resveratrol in supplements comes from Japanese knotweed, says Hausenblas, “but it's sexier and more romantic to say it comes from red wine.”
So why does red wine still have a good reputation?
Psychologically speaking, people “100%” like to be told that their seemingly bad habits are good for them, notes Hausenblas. And Marcus agrees. “For one thing, it’s definitely convenient and fits in with an American culture that enjoys alcohol,” she says. “Plus, the alcohol industry is big business, so the marketing dollars are flowing.” After all, the global red wine market reached more than $92 billion in 2022 and is forecasted to hit nearly $143 billion by 2030.
Marcus questions whether the recent research on the negative health consequences of drinking alcohol will shift the narrative. “While the studies suggesting higher risks with cancer are concerning, I wonder if people just need more evidence to be convinced to break a habit that has been so deeply ingrained in our culture.”
Yet Hausenblas believes the red wine health halo — along with the expectation, if not pressure, of ordering wine, beer or a cocktail when in social situations — may be slowly fading. “Even one glass of red wine will disrupt your sleep, and I feel that we’re beginning to change and understand that any type of alcohol is really not good for us,” she says. “I think the tides are turning, but it's still going to take some time.”
Up to 65% of American adults drink alcohol, but messaging around alcohol and its potential impact on health has been confusing in recent years. Some studies have claimed that smaller amounts of alcohol are good for you. Others say that any amount of booze is bad for your body.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recently took the latter stance. The agency said in January that “when it comes to alcohol consumption, there is no safe amount that does not affect health.”
“We cannot talk about a so-called safe level of alcohol use,” Carina Ferreira-Borges, acting unit lead for noncommunicable disease management and regional adviser for alcohol and illicit drugs in the WHO Regional Office for Europe, said in a statement. “It doesn’t matter how much you drink — the risk to the drinker’s health starts from the first drop of any alcoholic beverage. The only thing that we can say for sure is that the more you drink, the more harmful it is — or, in other words, the less you drink, the safer it is.”
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