I have a glass of red wine every night. Is that OK? (2024)

FAQs

I have a glass of red wine every night. Is that OK? ›

Research has found the optimal daily amount to be 1 glass (150 ml) for women and 2 glasses (300 ml) for men. This regimen is part of a Mediterranean diet and has been associated with beneficial health outcomes and disease prevention ( 23 , 31 ).

"If someone enjoys a glass of wine daily — and assuming he or she is in otherwise good health — there's no reason to stop," adds Dr. Septimus. "But there's also no reason someone should feel compelled to start a habit of drinking a glass of wine per day as a preventative."

Melatonin is a hormone that helps to regulate sleep-wake cycles. Our bodies produce less melatonin as we age, which may explain why older adults often have more difficulty sleeping. By drinking wine before bed, you may be able to increase your body's levels of melatonin and get a better night's sleep.

It's therefore not a good idea to drink wine to protect your heart. If you do drink alcohol, don't exceed 14 units a week. A unit is 10ml of pure alcohol, so 14 units is about six medium (175ml) glasses of wine (13 per cent ABV) or six pints of lager or cider (four per cent ABV) – this is a maximum, not a target.

By contrast, the new report says those who drink only one or two boozy beverages per week “will likely avoid” alcohol-related health consequences including chronic diseases, liver injury, and accidents—but the safest choice, it says, is not to drink at all.

A 5 ounce glass of red wine (around 150 milliliters) per day with an alcohol content of 12% falls within U.S. guidelines for moderate drinking. The government's 2020–2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends that men have no more than two drinks a day and women no more than one.

Your Body Starts to Detox

When you first stop drinking, your body will begin to detoxify itself. This can lead to withdrawal symptoms, including anxiety, tremors, sweating, and nausea. 1 Symptoms of alcohol withdrawal can range from mild to severe.

Too much can be destructive to your health, raising your blood pressure and your risk of developing several kinds of cancer. Too little may hold you back from some of the benefits that moderate drinkers enjoy, like lower incidence of cardiovascular disease, mortality and type-2 diabetes.

Several studies show that a nightly glass of red wine might assist in lowering your risks for heart disease and type 2 diabetes. This is due to it being packed with antioxidants and tannins. Resveratrol, as well as other antioxidants, in red wine help to increase HDL cholesterol (the good kind).

Usually, people enjoy drinking wine with dinner after finishing their day's duties. However, if we had to follow science, the time between 11 A.M. and 1 P.M. should actually be wine o'clock. The reason is that the mouth is drier at this time of the day.

Is two glasses of red wine every night too much? ›

However, if you are already drinking red wine, then there's no need to stop (unless you're drinking too much). As long as you don't drink more than 1–2 glasses per day, then it should be doing you good, as long as you are consuming it with a balanced diet such as the Mediterranean diet.

Many wine experts consider pinot noir to be the healthiest red wine because it contains the highest concentration of resveratrol. Pinot noir also contains fewer calories than other red wine varieties and may be less likely to cause heartburn thanks to its relatively low tannin content.

The term “wine belly” typically refers to the belly fat that some people accumulate after regularly consuming wine or other types of alcohol. While the name might suggest that this phenomenon is exclusive to wine drinkers, it actually applies to anyone who drinks frequently.

The average threshold alcohol intake to produce liver injury is 40 g/day to 60 g /day (3 to 5 drinks) in men but only 20 g/day (<2 drinks) in women with a drink defined as 12 oz (354 mL) of beer, 5 oz (148 mL) of wine or 1.5 oz (44 mL) of 80-proof distilled spirits, each containing about 12g of alcohol (7,8).

Some alcohol-related liver damage can be reversed if you stop drinking alcohol early enough in the disease process. Healing can begin as early as a few days to weeks after you stop drinking, but if the damage is severe, healing can take several months.

For healthy adults, that means: Up to one drink a day for women. Up to two drinks a day for men. The limit for men is higher because men most often weigh more than women and have more of the substance that breaks down alcohol in the body.

According to public health authorities, the amount of wine that you can have depends on several factors. In general, however, women should limit themselves to one or two glasses a day. Men can have slightly more at two to three glasses a day. Experts say that a glass of wine is 5 ounces.

Certain red wines such as barolo, cabernet sauvignon, and merlot have higher levels of melatonin.