Can Red Wine Help You Lose Weight?

The answer is both yes and no. Red wine is full of empty calories, like soda. However, it also contains modest amounts of the chemical resveratrol, which researchers believe may play a large part in maintaining a healthy diet. A university in England studies the effects of resveratrol on the human body and has come to the understanding that the chemical may someday bu used as a dietary supplement. Resveratrol works in conjunction with a gene in the human body that helps promote longevity, which means good health and the possibility of weight loss. The chemical can be found in high levels in red wine, but even if you drink the same, safe amount every day, the amount of resveratrol you're taking in isn't enough to help you maintain or lose weight.

The immediate answer many supply to this conundrum is to drink more wine. Sorry, but that's the wrong answer. The more wine you drink, the more empty calories you consume and the more long-term damage you do to your liver. Drinking more wine in order to get more resveratrol is like drinking a gallon of tap water because you need more salt. It just doesn't work that way. Nutrition scientists and researchers will eventually find a way to isolate resveratrol in order to provide a safer alternative and a way to get to its healthy benefits without drinking vastly inappropriate amounts of wine.

If you enjoy a glass or two each day, don't worry; it's still good for you. Other myths that are often spread about wine include the old saying that wine helps your food break down and digest. As a wine drinker, you've probably heard several different versions of this. In fact, wine doesn't help your digestion at all! Wine consumption during meals actually takes nutrients from the body. Enzymes and acids in your stomach actively break down your food to deliver nutrients and vitamins to the rest of your body. This is one reason why smart wine drinkers usually take their wine, or cocktails, before or after dinner.

The calories in wine are almost insignificant compared to other cocktails. The average glass of red wine has about 70 to 100 calories. A sweet or creamy cocktail or dessert drink could have anywhere from 200 to over 400 calories. The occasional Mudslide is just one of many guilty pleasures. In truth, while sweet cocktails are lovely, they should be treated like any other "sweet" thing -as a treat. A healthy diet should go easy on the desserts and treats. In terms of wine consumption, one glass a day for women and two for men is considered part of a healthy diet. If possible, change your drinking habits to having your wine a couple hours after you've eaten so your body can absorb the nutrients it needs.

By: Guillermo Bravo

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