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Drinking a small amount of wine every day could protect the heart, according to a new study of Spaniards following the plant-based Mediterranean dietwhich generally consists of drinking a small glass of wine with dinner.

In a group of people over 60 at risk of heart disease, drinking a half to a glass of wine per day reduced the risk of having a cardiovascular event such as a heart attack or stroke by 50%, compared to people who did not drink wine. .

However, this protective effect disappeared in people who drank more than one drink per day, according to the study’s lead author, Dr. Ramon Estruch, who studies cardiovascular risk, nutrition and aging at the University from Barcelona.

“This study examines the importance of moderate wine consumption as part of a healthy diet, such as the Mediterranean diet,” said Estruch, an internist in the internal medicine department of the Barcelona Hospital Clinic, in a press release.

“Until now, it was thought that 20% of the effects of the Mediterranean diet could be attributed to moderate wine consumption; however, in light of these results, the effect could be even greater,” he said.

However, critics say the study fails to take into account the well-known health harms of alcohol, including wine.

“While the study suggests that low to moderate wine consumption may reduce the risk of cardiovascular (cardiovascular) disease, it’s not a no-brainer to open a bottle of red wine,” said senior dietitian Tracy Parker. to the British Heart Foundation, which was not informed. involved in the study.

“It is well established that excessive alcohol consumption is harmful to heart health,” Parker said in a statement. “Drinking too much alcohol increases the risk of heart and circulatory diseases, such as high blood pressure and vascular dementia, as well as liver problems and certain cancers.

Additionally, many people don’t measure their poured wine accurately, experts say: What should be a small 4-ounce glass of wine could easily become a 6-ounce, or even 9-ounce, glass.

“People often say that ‘wine is good for the heart,’ but we also know that too much wine is ‘not good for the heart,'” said Paul Leeson, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Texas. ‘Oxford, which did not participate in the study. study.

Questionable conclusions

The research, published today in the European Journal of the Heartis part of an ongoing Spanish study investigating the impact of a Mediterranean diet on people at risk of heart disease. The 1,232 participants in the current study had type 2 diabetes or risk factors such as smoking, high cholesterol and high blood pressure, were overweight or obese and/or had a family history of the disease. cardiac.

At the start of the study, people were asked about their usual foods and drinks and were asked to provide a urine sample used to measure tartaric acid – a chemical excreted in urine that is found naturally in grape-based products such as wine. After a year on the Mediterranean diet, the urine test was repeated: if grapes or wine had been consumed in the last five days or so, the test would detect it.

“By measuring tartaric acid in urine, alongside food and drink questionnaires, we were able to measure wine consumption more precisely,” Estruch said.

Grapes, and therefore wine, contain large amounts of tartaric acid, but its use as a marker is not without concern, said Kevin McConway, emeritus professor of applied statistics at the Open University in Milton Keynes, UK. -Uni, who did not participate in the study. the study.

“Much of the variability in tartaric acid could come from other factors, such as not all respondents being honest about how much they drank, or there being a certain amount of time time between self-reported alcohol consumption and tartaric acid measurement, or because tartaric acid levels are also affected by consumption of other foods or by certain processes in the body,” McConway said. in a press release.

It’s also important to note that the study results only show association and not causation, Leeson said.

“It may be that people who consumed this amount of wine did other things in the study that helped reduce their risk,” Leeson said. “On the one hand, the study was carried out on people who also followed a heart-healthy diet. Perhaps the health benefits of a glass of wine only manifest when drunk with a plate of Mediterranean food? »

There are much healthier ways to protect your heart and overall health than drinking, such as eating a balanced diet and exercising regularly, as well as maintaining a healthy weight and not smoking, Parker said.

Naveed Sattar, a professor of cardiometabolic medicine and honorary consultant at the University of Glasgow in Scotland who was not involved in the study, advised against drinking wine or alcohol for good health.

“I strongly urge people to drink as little as possible if they want to be healthier,” Sattar said in a statement. “The wine paradox is a myth and this article adds nothing new to what is already known.”

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