What Makes Red Wine Good for You?

The resveratrol in red wine comes from the skin of grapes used to make wine

Surya WrightFebruary 05, 2019

resveratrol red wine cancer heart disease diabetes

It may be the Resveratrol, but what is it?

Resveratrol is a phytochemical found in grapes, peanuts, red wine and some berries. Phytochemicals are chemicals produced by plants that they use to defend themselves against disease; Research has shown that these same chemicals may be equally beneficial to the human body, helping in areas like cancer, heart disease and diabetes prevention.

In lab & animal tests resveratrol has been shown to inhibit a number of types of cancer including breast, prostate, stomach, colon, pancreatic and thyroid cancer.

Why does it matter to you?

In both a test tube and a living organism resveratrol has been shown to inhibit pathological angiogenesis (the blood supply for cancer).

Resveratrol has been shown to induce appropriate cell death in damaged cells, which may show it has a role in preventing the cell mutations that can lead to cancer.

How much do you need?

There is no RDA (recommended daily amount) for phytochemicals like resveratrol but the general advice is that diets high in phytochemicals are beneficial.

So how can you get some?

Red Wine

Red wine is the best source, with one medium (175ml) glass giving you 0.35mg.

The resveratrol in red wine comes from the skin of grapes used to make wine. Because red wine is fermented with grape skins longer than white wine, red wine contains more resveratrol.

Not a drinker?

Simply eating grapes or drinking grape juice, is one way to get resveratrol without drinking alcohol. Click on any of the names below to find the full nutrition for these foods.

Red Grapes

Red grape juice

Raw peanuts

Nowhere near as good as the red grape sources, but still a source.

Conclusion

Red wine is a source of iron and copper which contribute to contribute to your energy creation, immune system, nervous system and protect your cells from damaging free radicals. in addtion to these fantastic minerals red wine also contains resveratrol, a phytochemical that may also bring some additional powerful health benefits.

We are encouraged to drink sensibly and with the benefits available in red grapes and grape juice, there’s really no need to drink red wine at all, if you think you can’t stop after one or two!

Sources

LPI science on Resveratrol - this link leads to a site provided by the Linus Pauling Institute (LPI) at Oregon State University (OSU). CheckYourFood is not affiliated or endorsed by the LPI or OSU
New sources of resveratrol study
Concentration of resveratrol in wine

Surya Wright

Co-founder, production manager

I'm our communications and marketing person, dealing with social media and copywriting. I also work with Matt and Ric overseeing the design and strategic management of the site. I'm also the author of the Eva the Hungry Amoeba children's book series (only one so far). You can find it on Amazon. My favourite foods, shepherds pie and smoked haddock!

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