Light and moderate wine consumption is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular complications

Light and moderate wine consumption is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular complications, according to a multicenter study led by researchers from the University of Barcelona, ​​Hospital Clinic and Institute for Biomedical Research August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Physiopathology of Obesity. and Nutrition Networking Biomedical Research Center (CIBEROBN) and the University of Navarre (UNAV). The study, published in European Heart Journalit is based on the analysis of a biomarker of wine intake — namely, tartaric acid, which is present in grapes. It was conducted in 1,232 participants in the PREDIMED project, a major scientific epidemiological study in nutrition on the effects of the Mediterranean diet on cardiovascular health.

According to the researchers, “there is no doubt that excessive alcohol consumption has serious health consequences. However, the effects of moderate and responsible wine consumption are still the subject of debate in the scientific community. The results of this study and others should help place moderate wine consumption in its rightful place as an element of the Mediterranean diet, considered the healthiest in the world.”

The lead authors of the study are researcher Inés Domínguez, from the UB School of Pharmacy and Food Sciences and the Nutrition and Food Safety Research Institute (INSA). Professor Ramon Estruch, from the UB School of Medicine and Health Sciences and IDIBAPS. Rosa María Lamuela, professor and ICREA Academia, and member of INSA, and Professor Miguel ángel Martínez, from the University of Navarre (UNAV). all CIBEROBN members.

Controversy over the effects of wine

Today, there is much controversy about the health effects of moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages in general and wine in particular. Ramon Estruch emphasizes that “part of this debate is due to conflicting results of studies that have pointed to a protective effect of wine, while others have found no such effect.” These differences could be explained by possible errors in the wine consumption records. “Epidemiological studies assessing the role of wine in cardiovascular event rates often rely on self-reported information on wine consumption. These are reliable data, but are subject to measurement error due to inaccurate recall or biased perceptions of the social desirability of wine.” In response to this problem, the researchers in this study measured wine consumption through frequency surveys. food intake, which they confirmed with an objective biomarker: the urinary concentration of tartaric acid, a molecule produced mainly in grapes and rarely synthesized by other plant species.

Reduced from 38% to 50%

Using this methodology, the study analyzed wine consumption and cardiovascular outcomes in a group of PREDIMED patients. A total of 1,232 participants were evaluated, including 685 who had a cardiovascular event (cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, or heart failure) and 625 who were randomly selected.

Analysis of the data shows that light wine consumption (between one glass per week and less than half a glass per day) reduces the risk of cardiovascular complications by 38%, but this reduction reaches 50% when consumption is moderate (between half glass and one glass a day). However, when consumption exceeds one drink per day, the protective effect disappears. The researchers also caution that “when we talk about moderate wine consumption, it’s always with meals, never between meals.”

More studies to confirm the results

,Despite these conclusions, Inés Domínguez points out that “the study’s observational design limits the ability to prove causality,” and experts point out that more research is needed: “The results of cohort studies should always be confirmed for greater certainty.” In this regard, they point to two possible courses of action. The first would involve the design of randomized dietary intervention studies, with participants randomly assigned to groups with different wine consumption. “These are very expensive studies to conduct. There is one underway now, but the results will take another four to five years,” they add. The second would be to study the mechanisms of these protective effects of wine on the cardiovascular system, such as research on the anti-inflammatory power of wine polyphenols – such as resveratrol and other phenolic compounds. “Knowledge of the mechanisms lends great credence to the results of epidemiologic cohort studies,” they conclude.