Is Wine Good for You? These Are The 5 Healthiest Wines - Palate Club (2024)

Wine has been a part of international cultures since we figured out fermentation makes grape juice more fun. We’ve come a long way since then. According to OIV in their last State of the World Vitiviniculture report, we consumed an estimated 244 million hectoliters of wine globally in 2019! Yes, that’s a lot. Perhaps while contributing to this global consumption, you found yourself wondering…is wine good for you? And wino, we have great news for you.

In fact, wine is good for you. Yet there are some caveats to benefiting from the healthy aspects of our favorite juice. Read on to learn how to actually reap wine’s healthy benefits. Plus, discover the five healthiest wines you should be drinking.

Drinking in Moderation

Thankfully, enjoying wine and living a healthy lifestyle are not mutually exclusive. You can have your wine and drink it, too! However, drinking in moderation is essential to actually obtaining wine’s healthy benefits. Basically, that equates to consuming 1-1.5 glasses of red wine per day for women and 1-2 glasses for men with 1-2 alcohol free days per week.

Elevated amounts of alcohol intake increases your risk of high blood pressure, liver and pancreas diseases, cancer, obesity, weight gain, and more. So, always do your best to drink in moderation.

Red Wine Health Benefits

Considering wine is made from fruit, it’s logical to assume there must be certain health benefits to drinking this fermented juice. Yet certain wines are healthier than others.

Red Wine vs. White Wine

First, the majority of wine’s beneficial properties originate in grape skins, meaning red wines are better for you than white wines. This is thanks in large part to the varied winemaking processes of each.

White wine is typically made by pressing grapes off their skins and fermenting only the juice. While red wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes with their skins. Then, alcohol and heat during red wine fermentation extract color, flavor, and tannins from the skins, as well as compounds beneficial to our health. These healthy compounds include antioxidants, anthocyanins, flavonoids, polyphenols, and more.

More often than not, red wines are also fermented completely dry. Therefore, they typically contain less sugars than white wine.

So, if you’re going to drink a glass of wine, reach for red. If you must have white wine, do your best to choose one with no residual sugar. For an alternative lighter option with some of red wine’s health benefits, enjoy a glass of rosé. Since rosé has spent some time on the skins to obtain that pink color, it will have similar, though significantly less, health benefits as red wine.

Why Is Wine Good For You?

Drinking red wine in moderation is linked to lowering the risk of heart disease, stroke, and early death. Additionally, research has shown moderate red wine consumption reduces your risk of cancer and dementia, lowers blood pressure and “bad cholesterol,” and decreases your risk of depression. There are numerous naturally occurring compounds in wine that provide these benefits.

Antioxidants

Red wine contains antioxidants called polyphenols, which boast a number of health benefits. These antioxidants help to protect our body’s cells from oxidative stress and damage caused by free radicals in our system. This oxidative stress is linked to aging, cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.

Resveratrol

Resveratrol is one of red wine’s many antioxidants, which has an extensive number of health benefits. It’s recognized for preventing damage to blood vessels, reducing “bad” LDL cholesterol while raising “good” HDL cholesterol, boosting brain health, and fighting inflammation from toxins and allergens.

Anthocyanins

Anthocyanins are red, blue, and purple pigment compounds in the flavonoid family. Berries, flowers, grape skins, and other fruits and vegetables contain them. Anthocyanins have many antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, including their ability to lower high blood pressure and help manage weight loss.

Flavonols

Flavonols are another type of flavonoid, a beneficial compound in fruits and vegetables, found in wine. Again, these help fight inflammation and serve as antioxidants. Flavonols assist in cardiovascular disease prevention and support the formation of healthy blood vessel walls.

Catechins

Fruits, vegetables, and certain medicinal plants contain these natural phytochemical compounds. Catechins are one of wine’s polyphenols that have beneficial health effects even in small doses, i.e. drinking one glass of wine per day. They’re linked to prevention of a number of diseases, such as inflammatory bowel disease and delayed tumor development.

Is Wine Good for You? These Are The 5 Healthiest Wines - Palate Club (1)

The 5 Healthiest Red Wines

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir has the highest concentration of resveratrol antioxidants. Additionally, while most red wines have low or non-existent residual sugars, Pinot Noir often has a lower initial sugar pre-fermentation. This results in lower alcohol and less calories in the finished wine compared to a higher alcohol wine like Cabernet Sauvignon.

Malbec

As an especially thick-skinned variety, Malbec claims higher antioxidant levels than other red wines especially in terms of resveratrol. This variety has two to four times the amount of anti-inflammatory, health boosting antioxidants than other popular red wines like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet Sauvignon’s high polyphenol content and tendency towards a dry style make this another healthy red option. Specifically, Cabernet Sauvignon has a higher concentration of proanthocyanidins, known for their antimicrobial properties and free radical scavenging activity.

Merlot

Merlot is another dry red rich in resveratrol antioxidants. Notably, drinking Merlot in moderation improves gut health, prevents heart disease, and lowers the risk of blood clotting by increasing good HDL cholesterol levels.

Cannonau – Grenache from Sardinia

While Grenache touts similar health benefits of other red wines, Grenache from Sardinia, aka Cannonau, offers one of the healthiest red options. Cannonau has two to three times the number of flavonoids as other red wines, containing even more antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

A daily glass of Cannonau is one of the reasons Sardinia is amongst the blue zones of the world with a higher concentration of centenarians or people who live 100 years or more.

Ready to incorporate red wine in moderation into your healthy lifestyle? You just might live to be 117 years old like this woman who claims red wine is her secret to longevity.

Sources

Healthline

Mayo Clinic

Pub Med

Dove Med

Mayo Clinic

Is Wine Good for You? These Are The 5 Healthiest Wines - Palate Club (2024)

FAQs

Which wine is the healthiest for you? ›

Pinot Noir is rated as the healthiest wine because of the high levels of resveratrol. It is made of grapes with thin skin, has low sugar, fewer calories, and low alcohol content. Sagrantino made in Italy contains the highest concentration of antioxidants and is packed with tannins.

Is it true that wine is good for you? ›

Red wine, in moderation, has long been thought of as heart healthy. The alcohol and certain substances in red wine called antioxidants may help prevent coronary artery disease, the condition that leads to heart attacks. Any links between red wine and fewer heart attacks aren't completely understood.

Is it healthy to drink wine everyday? ›

"What is certain about wine and other types of alcohol is that drinking beyond moderation has clear impacts on a person's health," warns Dr. Septimus. "Regularly drinking more wine than recommended increases a person's risk of developing cancer, liver disease, chronic pancreatitis, sleep disorders and more."

Which alcohol is the healthiest to drink? ›

However, if you are going to drink, having red wine in moderation is a healthier choice than other alcoholic drinks. This is due to its high levels of antioxidants called polyphenols, which have been linked to better heart and gut health.

Which wine is not harmful? ›

Red Wine May Lower the Risk of Heart Disease, Stroke and Early Death. Small amounts of red wine are linked to more health benefits than any other alcoholic beverage ( 5 , 15 , 16 ). There seems to be a J-shaped curve that explains the relationship between wine intake and the risk of heart disease.

How much alcohol should a 70 year old woman drink? ›

Those who do not take medication and are in good health should limit their total alcohol consumption to no more than seven drinks per week. Additionally, those 65+ should consume no more than three drinks on any given day.

Is red wine good for arthritis? ›

Red wine contains a compound called resveratrol, which has potent anti-inflammatory effects. Studies show that red wine consumption is associated with a reduced risk of knee-related osteoarthritis. It can also cut risk factors contributing to rheumatoid arthritis.

Is wine good for high blood pressure? ›

Myth: Red wine lowers blood pressure.

Fact: There's no definitive evidence that red wine lowers blood pressure. In fact, alcohol actually raises blood pressure.

Which drink is best for heart? ›

When it comes to heart-healthy drinks, there's none better than water. Our bodies need it. In fact, we're mostly made up of water, including our major organs, such as the heart. Most of the chemical reactions that happen in our cells need water, and it helps our blood carry nutrients around the body.

Is wine good for your kidneys? ›

A study carried out by Dr. Tapan Mehta and his team at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Centre, in Aurora, has shown that those with healthy kidneys who consumed a moderate amount of wine per day (in the region of 4 ounces) had a 37 per cent lower likelihood of developing chronic kidney disease.

What can I drink instead of wine? ›

What to drink instead of alcohol
  • Soda and fresh lime. Proof that simple is still the best.
  • Berries in iced water. This summery drink will keep you refreshed and revitalised.
  • Kombucha. ...
  • Virgin bloody Mary. ...
  • Virgin Mojito. ...
  • Half soda/half cranberry juice and muddled lime. ...
  • Soda and fresh fruit. ...
  • Mocktails.

What type of red wine is healthiest? ›

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is considered the healthiest red wine you can drink. Unlike many of the reds on this list, Pinot grapes have a thin skin, so Pinot Noir has low tannins but high levels of resveratrol.

What is the best alcohol for sleep? ›

The Best Nightcaps To Mix Before Bed
  • 01 of 07. Lavender Honey Cream. Courtesy of Liquor.com. ...
  • 02 of 07. Manhattan. Courtesy of Liquor.com. ...
  • 03 of 07. Scotch and Soda. Courtesy of Liquor.com. ...
  • 04 of 07. Brady's Milk Punch co*cktail. Courtesy of Liquor.com. ...
  • 05 of 07. Hot Toddy. ...
  • 06 of 07. New York Sour. ...
  • 07 of 07. French Connection.
22 Jun 2017

What alcohol is hardest on the liver? ›

"Hard liquor contains more alcohol than beer or wine, making it more dangerous for your liver," continues Coleman. "A single shot of 80-proof hard liquor contains about 15 grams of alcohol and most shots contain even more alcohol than this." Another alcoholic beverage also takes a considerable toll on your liver.

What happens to your body when you drink wine every night? ›

Drinking wine every night can lead to weight gain, decreased immune function, and mental health issues [1]. Additionally, having more than a few drinks daily can affect liver health, resulting in liver damage or liver disease [2].

Is it OK to drink a bottle of wine a day? ›

Drinking a bottle of wine per day is not considered healthy by most standards. However, when does it morph from a regular, innocent occurrence into alcohol use disorder (AUD) or alcoholism? First, it's important to note that building tolerance in order to drink an entire bottle of wine is a definitive red flag.

Is it OK to have a glass of wine every night? ›

So, can you keep drinking a daily glass of wine? The simple answer: yes! The not-so-simple answer: it's ultimately up to you. Research still supports the idea that light to moderate amounts of red wine (one glass per night) have mostly beneficial or neutral effects on our health.

How much should an elderly woman drink a day? ›

How much water do you need to stay hydrated? As a general rule, you should take one-third of your body weight and drink that number of ounces in fluids. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, aim to drink 50 ounces of water each day.

How much should an 80 year old woman drink? ›

Experts generally recommend that older adults consume at least 1.7 liters of fluid per 24 hours. This corresponds to 57.5 fluid ounces, or 7.1 cups.

What is considered a heavy drinker for a woman? ›

What do you mean by heavy drinking? For men, heavy drinking is typically defined as consuming 15 drinks or more per week. For women, heavy drinking is typically defined as consuming 8 drinks or more per week.

What drink helps with joint pain? ›

Tea is one of the most-studied drinks when it comes to its benefits for arthritis patients. Green, black and white teas are all rich in polyphenols – compounds from plants that have strong anti-inflammatory effects. You'll find the highest polyphenol levels in green and white teas.

What fruit is good for joint pain? ›

Berries pack a double dose of anti-inflammatory properties. All fruits are high in antioxidants, which can help fight inflammation. Additionally, foods like blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and blackberries contain anthocyanins, which reduce inflammation.

Does lemon water help with inflammation? ›

Lemon water has several health benefits thanks to its high vitamin C concentration, flavonoid content, and acidity. Both flavonoids and vitamin C are strong antioxidants and have anti-inflammatory effects, therefore they may protect cells from damage and reduce inflammation in the body.

What alcohol should I drink if I have high blood pressure? ›

If you've been advised against drinking for very high blood pressure, there may be salvation in one kind of wine: nonalcoholic. One study found that three glasses of nonalcoholic red wine a day over a month led to a significant drop in blood pressure in men with heart disease risk factors.

Can drinking too much water raise your blood pressure? ›

In some patients, water drinking increases systolic blood pressure by 100 mm Hg, which can result in danger- ously high blood pressure in the supine position. In these patients, water drinking should probably be avoided for 1.5 hours before retiring.

What can I take in the morning for high blood pressure? ›

The following common drinks have been found to reduce blood pressure to varying degrees.
  • Tomato Juice. Tomato juice is rich in vitamins, potassium, and antioxidants, which makes it great for general heart health. ...
  • Beet Juice. ...
  • Prune Juice. ...
  • Pomegranate Juice. ...
  • Berry Juice. ...
  • Skim Milk. ...
  • Tea. ...
  • Caffeine.
6 Oct 2022

Which fruit is best for heart? ›

Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries are jam-packed with important nutrients that play a central role in heart health. Berries are also rich in antioxidants like anthocyanins, which protect against the oxidative stress and inflammation that contribute to the development of heart disease ( 9 ).

What can I drink to calm my heart? ›

A 2017 study found that a 335-milliliter drink of water could reduce resting heart rate over a 30-minute period. This decline continued for another 30 minutes. Drinking plenty of beverages throughout the day could lower a person's heart rate.

What is the healthiest morning drink? ›

10 Healthy Morning Drinks to Get Your Day Started
  • Honey and cinnamon drink. Have a glass of honey and cinnamon drink first thing in the morning. ...
  • Lemon Juice. ...
  • Cinnamon Green Tea. ...
  • Coconut water. ...
  • Aloe juice. ...
  • Pomegranate tea. ...
  • Fruit smoothies. ...
  • Green tea lassi.
29 Oct 2021

What is the best thing to drink for your kidneys? ›

Water: Water is simply the best drink you can have! Water is a zero-calorie, perfectly hydrating, cheap drink. If you are in the earlier stages of kidney disease, choosing water most of the time to quench your thirst will keep your body and kidneys functioning well.

Which wine has the least sugar in it? ›

Here are the lowest-sugar wines in the game: Dry reds, which often have under one gram of sugar per five-ounce pour: Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah/Shiraz. Dry whites, which have between one and 1.5 grams of sugar per five ounces: Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, and Viognier.

Which alcohol is least harmful to your liver? ›

So, now on to the all-important question, which alcohol is easiest on the liver? The quick answer is, none of them. The reason is that the main liver-damaging ingredient in all types of alcohol is ethanol. It doesn't matter which alcohol you chose, be it weak beer or grain alcohol.

What can I replace wine with at night? ›

101 Sober Rituals to Replace Your Nightly Glass of Wine
  • Color.
  • Water and/or check on your indoor plants.
  • Listen to a podcast.
  • Listen to an audiobook.
  • Sit in a sauna.
  • Sit in an ice bath.
  • Go for a swim.
  • Practice origami.
2 Feb 2021

What happens when you stop drinking wine every day? ›

Symptoms/outcomes you may see

Onset of withdrawal symptoms which may include hand tremors, retching, excessive sweating, restlessness and anxiety. Withdrawal symptoms continue. Alcohol cravings, reduced energy and feeling low or depressed are common. Sleep is likely to be disturbed.

Which is the healthiest wine red or white? ›

Red wine is widely believed to be a healthier choice than white wine, but this is based on limited data and speculative reports, according to experts quoted in a January 28, 2022 Wall Street Journal article.

Which wine has the least amount of sugar? ›

Here are the lowest-sugar wines in the game: Dry reds, which often have under one gram of sugar per five-ounce pour: Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah/Shiraz. Dry whites, which have between one and 1.5 grams of sugar per five ounces: Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay, and Viognier.

Which is healthy red wine or white wine? ›

If you are going to drink wine, it seems clear that red wine is significantly healthier — or less bad — than white wine. In other words, red wine is the clear winner when it comes to health effects.

Is red wine healthier than red grapes? ›

There are a number of antioxidants found in the skin of grapes, which may make red wine the healthier option.

Is wine healthier than beer? ›

The nutritional value of beer exceeds that of wine . The values of protein, fiber, B vitamins, folate, and niacin found in beer make it more like food. Studies in mice showed that hops may inhibit obesity.

Is red wine good for high blood pressure? ›

A higher intake of foods rich in flavonoids - including berries, apples, tea and red wine - has been linked to lower blood pressure in new research. Three glasses of red wine a week can help lower blood pressure, a study has found.

Is wine full of sugar? ›

According to the United States Department of Agriculture, a five-ounce glass of red table wine typically contains about 0.9 grams of total sugar, while a glass of chardonnay contains about 1.4 grams. A sweet dessert wine, typically served in a smaller two- to three-ounce glass, contains as much as 7 grams of sugar.

Which red wine is the healthiest? ›

Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is considered the healthiest red wine you can drink. Unlike many of the reds on this list, Pinot grapes have a thin skin, so Pinot Noir has low tannins but high levels of resveratrol.

Can diabetics drink wine? ›

What to know about diabetes and drinking wine. Most people with diabetes can drink alcohol, including wine, as long as they do not have another medical condition that makes drinking unsafe. Wine may even offer some protective health benefits in small quantities.

Which wine has the least sugar and carbs? ›

Extra brut is the driest type of wine, which means that it contains less sugar. Prosecco, Champagne, and Cava generally contain 2 or 3 carbs per glass, making them great options if you're trying to follow a low carb diet.

Which wine has more sugar? ›

Again, the trusty Department of Agriculture can help us out. They say the average six-ounce glass of white wine contains about 1.73 grams of sugar. That's 0.61 grams or 64% more sugar than a glass of red wine. That also impacts the calories in white wine.

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