Diet & Nutrition

Vitamin D and COVID-19: Could Adequate Levels Protect Your Health?

As new research reveals a link between vitamin D and COVID-19, finding natural ways to get sufficient levels of vitamin D becomes more vital to our health.

Why is Vitamin D Important?

In some areas of research, the to endeavor to prove the efficacy of vitamin D in promoting physical and emotional health is still underway. For instance, we know that there’s a relationship between depression and vitamin D, but research still seeks to confirm that vitamin D is effective in boosting the mood.

Even if it does not turn out to be useful in treating depression, vitamin D has been proven to benefit human health in a variety of other ways. Here are just a few ways that getting sufficient daily doses of vitamin D can help people live healthier and happier lives.

Protects Against Viruses

In a recent Japanese study, it was found that supplemental vitamin D drops administered to school-aged children reduced their likelihood of developing the flu and other wintertime illnesses. This led the researchers to confirm that the vitamin plays an important role in building up or maintaining the immune system.

Positively Impacts Multiple Sclerosis

In simple terms, multiple sclerosis (MS) is the result of the immune system attacking the central nervous system. Although there is no cure, there have been some breakthroughs in developing treatments that reduce the symptoms. One study found that maintaining a sufficient supply of vitamin D can help prevent individuals from developing this condition. Additionally, those who already have MS can reduce the severity or frequency of symptoms by taking vitamin D supplements.

Reduces Certain Cancer Risks

Studies have found that the risks of developing colon, prostate and breast cancer are decreased by getting enough vitamin D. Those risks are further lowered when the supplement includes calcium.

Protects the Bones

The primary role of vitamin D is to help protect against bone-density loss. As people age, their bodies lose the ability to create more bone to replace that which is lost naturally over time. Increasing your intake of vitamin D can help combat this problem, which is why those suffering from osteoporosis and osteomalacia are advised to get more vitamin D.

The Link Between Vitamin D and COVID-19

Reviewing past reports from various countries around the world has led researchers to find that mortality rates among hospital patients are higher in those suffering from a vitamin D deficiency. They also found the opposite to be true, meaning that patients with higher vitamin D levels were more likely to recover from their illness. These previous findings have led researchers to establish a link between vitamin D and COVID-19 in a more recent study.

The new study found that vitamin D can help prevent an overload of cytokines, which are released by the immune system and attack healthy cell tissue in the often-mentioned “cytokine storm” associated with serious COVID-19 cases. Since these are the first findings of this kind, more research is needed to confirm the effect that of vitamin D on immune functioning.

An observational study in the U.K. found that that there was also a significant instance of vitamin D deficiencies in hospitalized COVID-19 patients. The researchers in that study also confirmed that patients lacking sufficient amounts of the vitamin were more likely to die from the virus.

Here in the United States, a Northwestern University study found that an insufficient intake of vitamin D raised the risks of contracting COVID-19 by 17 percent. There was a 14 percent risk of getting the virus for those who had good levels of vitamin D. Meanwhile, researchers in Louisiana and Texas found that 11 of the 20 patients admitted to hospital ICU wards for COVID-19 also had insufficient vitamin D. Conversely, there were only four patients with optimal vitamin D levels admitted for COVID-19. An Indonesian study added more observational proof that there was a link between vitamin D levels and the novel coronavirus. They reported that most of the 780 COVID-19 fatalities also showed evidence of insufficient vitamin D levels.

Natural Ways to Get More Vitamin D

While more research is needed to confirm that vitamin D does have a positive effect in the treatment of COVID-19, getting more vitamin D is still beneficial to your health. Here are a few ways you can naturally boost your vitamin D intake.

Spend More Time Outdoors

Exposure to the sun is the best way to get more vitamin D. While too much exposure to the sun should be avoided, getting sun exposure in short bursts will help you maintain your vitamin D levels for longer.

Eat More Seafood

Adding more seafood to your diet is another good way to boost vitamin D levels. In particular, fatty fish, such as tuna, oysters, shrimp, sardines and anchovies, provide higher amounts of the nutrient. Even wild-caught salmon provides a hearty supply of the nutrient.

Take a Daily Supplement

If you are concerned that you’re not getting enough vitamin D through sun exposure and your diet, you can take a supplement. A daily vitamin formula with a sufficient supply of vitamin D can help you boost your exposure to healthier levels.

Look for Fortified Foods

Vitamin D is also added to certain foods that you can buy in any grocery store. In addition to fortified cereals, you can also find vitamin D in orange juice, milk, yogurt, tofu and milk alternatives. It’s important to note, however, that many fortified foods contain vitamin D2, not the more ideal form of vitamin D, which is vitamin D3. As you shop, be sure to check the ingredient lists of each product to ensure it is a good source of vitamin D.

Are Stress and Autoimmune Disease Linked by Gut Bacteria?

Jun 04 by Ewcopywriting

Each of us has a community of microorganisms that thrive in an area of our large intestines known as the gut microbiome. This part of the gut serves as a home to trillions of bacteria and other microbes that interact with the rest of the body. While some bacteria are harmful and contributes to the development of disease and infection, other types of bacteria are actually beneficial. New research finds gut bacteria play a role in the relationship between stress and autoimmune disease, suggesting a healthier lifestyle may reduce risks.

The Gut Microbiome Plays an Important Role in Overall Health

In a normal, healthy gut microbiome, there up to 1,000 different types of bacteria. This is important, because each strain serves a different function, affecting health in a unique way. For instance, Bifidobacteria is a type of bacteria that helps infants digest the sugars that are present in breast milk. Similarly, other types of bacteria help the body digest fiber more efficiently. Once digested the compounds in fiber help the body protect against heart disease, cancer and obesity.

Research in recent years has found that the beneficial bacteria in the gut can strengthen the immune system and reduce the risks of a variety of medical conditions, such as type 2 diabetes and gastrointestinal disorders. Since the gut microbiome serves so many functions, it’s now considered to be an extra organ in the body, and continuing research is finding that it benefits health in more ways than previously known.

Stress and Autoimmune Disease Linked to Gut Microbiome

While there are several illnesses that can be categorized as autoimmune diseases, all of these develop as the result of a similar process. Essentially, the immune system erroneously identifies a group of cells, an organ or some other tissue in the body as a harmful bacteria or virus. This causes the immune system to turn on the body and attack healthy tissue. Some examples of these types of illnesses include rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes and lupus.

A study conducted at Israel’s Bar Ilan University found that there was a link between stress and autoimmune disease, which may involve microbial activity in the gut. Working with mice, they found that social stress caused an increase in the production of effector T helper cells. These cells are responsible for the immune system’s response to threats, indicating that stress may play a role in instigating autoimmune diseases.

The researchers also found an increase of two specific types of bacteria in the gut microbiomes of the mice. These bacteria, Bilophila and Dehalobacterium, are also found in higher amounts in the gut microbiomes of people with multiple sclerosis. The increase of these types of bacteria may have something to do with the alterations of genes in the gut which occur as a result of stress. The changes to the genes in the gut help bacteria travel to other parts of the body, thrive and grow, and relay signals to various organs in the body.

As a result of the genetic changes, the bacteria travel to the lymph nodes, where they can manipulate immune responses. Essentially, stress promotes changes to the genes in the gut, which, in turn, results in changes to the how the lymph nodes manage immune responses.

This increases the risk that an individual suffering from excess stress will ultimately develop autoimmune diseases. The opposite may also be true, suggesting that managing stress can help you keep your risk of autoimmune disorders low.

Tips for Managing Stress

Exercise

Physical activity is essential to your physical health, but it also has positive effects on your mind and emotions. By working out for a minimum of 30 minutes per day, you’ll experience a release of endorphins that will boost your mood and reduce stress hormones.

Reduce Substance Use

You may think that alcohol and drugs are making you feel better, but they’re actually exacerbating the problem. Once that euphoric feeling wears off, stressful feelings will return. This will prompt you to take more drugs or drink more alcohol. In addition to running the risk of developing an addiction, this cycle will cause you to feel more stressed over time.

Eat a Healthy Diet

The foods you eat will also impact your emotional health. Natural foods, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, contain essential nutrients and vitamins that help your body and brain function. When your diet consists primarily of processed foods, you’re depriving your body of these nutrients. As a result, your brain won’t function as efficiently as it should, which can result in a more concentrated release of stress hormones.

Manage Time More Efficiently

For many people, stress is increased by a lack of time to get everything accomplished. Even though you may have a lot on your plate, you can get through each day more easily by planning ahead. Just before bedtime each night, make a list of everything you need to get done on the following day and assign a block of time for each task. This will help to ensure you get everything done without feeling overly burdened.

Relax

Each day, you should set aside some time to do something that relaxes you. Whether that’s meditating and practicing yoga, reading a good book or listening to your favorite podcast, you can choose any activity you enjoy. In addition to reducing stress levels and helping you stay healthy, taking this time to unwind will also help you sleep better.

Melatonin and Metabolism: How the Sleep Hormone Supports Healthy Weight

May 29 by Ewcopywriting

Melatonin is most often thought of as the “sleep hormone,” as it is produced by the body in response to lower levels of light at the end of the day in order to promote sleep. New research finds a link between melatonin and metabolism, suggesting the sleep hormone is also essential in maintaining a healthy weight.

Research Links Melatonin and Metabolism

There is a confirmed link between melatonin and metabolism; but how does a hormone that promotes sleep also help the body burn fat? In a recent study, it was discovered that melatonin helps the body to make a special kind of fat cell that actually works to burn calories.

In the study, 16 rats were divided into two groups and each group was fed exactly the same diet. The only difference was that the first group was given water mixed with a melatonin supplement, while the rats in the second group drank regular water.

Once the trial period was over, the researchers conducted tests on all of the rats to get an accurate count of brown and white fat (adipose) cells. These two types of cells are of particular interest, because brown fat cells burn fat and encourage weight loss, while white fat cells store calories and promote weight gain. The rats who drank the mixture of melatonin and water were found to have significantly more brown fat cells than the rats who weren’t given the supplement.

These findings are especially interesting in that all of the rats were fed the same diet and engaged in similar levels of physical activity. Dr. Russel Reiter, who co-authored the study, explained that the melatonin had a positive effect on the brown fat cells in the rats’ blood. He suggested that the hormone encouraged the production of more brown fat cells, while also causing white fat cells to turn brown.

These are the same brown fat cells that are produced as the result of physical activity, so there’s hope that this research may lead to new treatments for weight loss and obesity. Even though melatonin is used by the brain to promote sleep, melatonin supplements do not make people overly drowsy like sleeping pills do. This means the side effects of taking a melatonin supplement for reasons other than sleep are minimal and that it is safer than most over-the-counter medications.

Why Does Sleep Play a Role in Weight Management?

Even before researchers found a link between melatonin and metabolism, it was known that sleeping habits played a significant role in obesity and weight loss. In a previous study, it was discovered that the resting metabolic rate was lowered in men who didn’t get enough quality sleep. A group of 15 men were deprived of sleep for a 24hour period, and afterwards, had their resting metabolic rates (RMR) examined. Researchers found that their RMR were 5 percent lower than normal. Additionally, their metabolic rates after eating were 20 percent lower, causing more fat to be stored in the body.

More research has found that poor sleep results in a greater risk of weight gain and obesity. While children with insufficient sleep cycles are 89 percent more likely to become obese, adults also face a 55 percent increased risk of obesity as the result of poor sleep. This may be the result of a combination of poor melatonin production and the development of poor nutritional habits that often accompanies sleep deprivation.

One study followed the sleeping habits of 60,000 non-obese nurses over a 16-year period. Researchers found that the nurses who got fewer than seven hours of sleep per night, averaging at 5.5 hours nightly, were 15 percent more likely to become obese within the 16-year period.

The problem is compounded by the fact that spending more time awake leads to frequent snacking and overeating. This is especially true of people who work unusual hours, such as graveyard shifts, because they tend to eat irregularly and exercise less. This adds to the problem of weight gain, which is further aggravated by a lack of sufficient sleep.

How You Can Maintain a Healthy Circadian Rhythm

Your body produces melatonin naturally, but the release of a sufficient amount of the hormone relies on maintaining a healthy circadian rhythm, or biological clock. The circadian rhythm regulates sleep and wakefulness by releasing hormones, such as melatonin, and the circadian rhythm itself is regulated by exposure to daylight and the darkness of night. These tips can help you use the changing of day into night to better regulate your own circadian rhythm.

Turn Off Electronic Devices

Your circadian rhythm uses the rising and setting of the sun to determine the best time for releasing melatonin, but it can be tricked by artificial light. This is why it’s a good idea to turn off electronic devices and dim lights at least one hour before bed. This gives your brain time to adjust and wind down for the night.

Get More Light During the Day

It’s just as important to expose yourself to natural sunlight as much as possible during the morning and early afternoon hours. If you’re not getting this sunlight exposure, your circadian rhythm can be thrown off balance and may not produce adequate amounts of melatonin at bedtime. At the very least, try to work next to an open window that’s facing the sun in the morning or afternoon.

Exercise Every Day

Getting at least 30 minutes of moderate-to-high intensity exercise each day will also help your body maintain a reliable circadian rhythm. If possible, you should exercise outdoors, or in a fitness center with plenty of windows. This will allow you to maximize your sunlight exposure, while also helping you promote better weight loss and muscle growth. This will all help your brain produce more sufficient levels of melatonin in the evening.

Eat Melatonin-Rich Foods

There are also a number of natural foods that contain melatonin, so eating a more varied diet that includes some of theses foods can help. Some examples include walnuts, sunflower seeds, almonds, tomatoes, cherries and fennel. A couple of spices that are also excellent sources of the hormone are coriander and cardamom. Since melatonin promotes a healthier metabolism, adding these foods to your diet can help you lose weight and sleep better. If you are finding it hard to eat enough melatonin-rich foods, you can take a high-quality melatonin supplement to help you fall asleep more quickly and enjoy a more restful sleep.

Prebiotics Promote Sleep, Soothe Stress and More

May 26 by Ewcopywriting

Recent research has found that prebiotics promote sleep, suggesting that adding these natural compounds to your diet can help you to get a better night’s sleep.

What Are Prebiotics?

One of the systems that regulates your overall health is the gut microbiome, which is located in your large intestines and serves as a home to trillions of microbes. While some bacteria can be harmful, the microorganisms in your gut microbiome are helpful, assisting your body by regulating digestion, immune system functioning and dozens of other processes throughout the body. While this system functions on its own, you can help it to work optimally by ensuring it has a broad and diverse community of microbes.

This is where prebiotics come into the picture. The microorganisms in your gut microbiome need nourishment to survive, so it’s up to you to eat the right foods that provide this sustenance. The types of foods that feed your gut microbiome contain prebiotics, which help the bacteria in your gut thrive and grow.

Prebiotics are found in the fiber of plant-based foods, which is just one reason eating fruits and vegetables is important to your health. This type of fiber isn’t digested easily, which means it can be passed through your digestive system and into your gut. Once the fiber makes it to your large intestine, the bacteria in the gut microbiome feed on it to get essential nourishment.

It’s more common to hear about probiotics in the media, but probiotics are not the same as prebiotics. While prebiotics help the bacteria in your gut to grow, probiotics introduce new microorganisms into your gut microbiome. This is also important to the health of your gut, but it should be understood that probiotics perform a different function. Additionally, recent research has found that prebiotics may perform other roles in maintaining health.

How Do Prebiotics Promote Sleep?

In order to understand how prebiotics promote sleep and reduce stress, it’s important to understand the connection between the gut microbiome and the brain. These two areas of the body interact in three known ways by affecting how cells in other parts of the body are regulated. For instance, both the brain and the bacteria in the gut affect the immune system’s cells, and this allows these two systems to interact with one another as well.

The brain and gut also share an endocrine system pathway, where they can exchange hormones. This helps hormones, such as dopamine, serotonin, melatonin and cortisol, cross the blood-brain barrier. Finally, the vagus nerve acts as a superhighway that provides direct access between the brain and the gut. This enables the gut to directly influence brain activities, including regulating the release of neurotransmitters that affect sleep patterns.

A study conducted at the University of Colorado in Boulder focused on the link between prebiotics and sleep. The researchers used two groups of male rats, feeding the first group a diet heavy in prebiotic foods. The second group was deprived of prebiotics, but fed a regular diet. During the five-week study, all of the rats were exposed to stimuli intended to produce high stress levels. The researchers found that the rats receiving the prebiotic diet experienced lower stress levels and slept more deeply. They confirmed that the prebiotic-fed rats spent more time in REM sleep, which is vital to mental health.

The researchers found that these benefits were the result of changes to metabolites in the gut, which are a specific type of microbial life. By altering the development of metabolites, prebiotics help them to influence the brain’s response to stress. This process also helps promote more frequent REM sleep.

Ways to Add More Prebiotics to Your Diet

Essentially, prebiotics work together with probiotics to ensure your gut microbiome is as diverse as possible. If you think you may not be getting enough prebiotics and probiotics in your diet, taking a high-quality supplement that’s engineered to provide both prebiotics and probiotics can help. Adding the following foods to your diet will also help keep your gut healthy and the microbiome diverse.

Garlic

The sweet flavor of garlic is the result of a prebiotic called fructooligosaccharides (FOS). About 6 percent of each garlic clove’s fiber is comprised of FOS. Garlic also has antioxidant properties, helping to fight against cancer and other degenerative conditions.

Onions

Garlic and onions belong to the same family, and they contain the same measure of FOS. The prebiotics in onions are also helpful in breaking down fat in the gut, so they may assist with weight loss. Onions help the body produce more nitric oxide, which aids in strengthening the immune system.

Asparagus

As a great source of fiber, asparagus is also an excellent source of prebiotics. Additionally, asparagus has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, making it a helpful food in protecting cellular health and improving heart health.

Bananas

Providing a high content of starch as well as fiber, bananas are a great source of prebiotics. In addition to helping you maintain a healthy gut microbiome, bananas have been shown to be helpful in lowering abdominal bloating.

Oats

Adding more oats to your diet will help you boost the prebiotics in your gut as a result of the large beta-glucan fiber content in each serving. In addition to helping you maintain a thriving gut microbiome, oats will help you lower your LDL (bad) cholesterol, and help to regulate your blood sugar levels.

Apples

Finally, apples are another excellent source of prebiotics. In this case, the pectin in apples, which makes up more than half of the fruit’s fiber, provide the gut with a substantial supply of prebiotics. The polyphenol antioxidants in apples also help protect against cancer, and help to reduce LDL cholesterol.

The Amazing Health Benefits of Bitter Melon

May 13 by Ewcopywriting

Bitter melon is a little-known fruit that looks very similar to the cucumber and zucchini, which is because it comes from the same family of plants. While each type of food offers some health benefits, bitter melon may surpass its relatives in what it can do for the human body. Among the vast health benefits of bitter melon, recent research finds that this plant food may promote healthy cell growth, helping to protect against the spread of cancer.

What is Bitter Melon?

Originating in South India, bitter melon was first imported by China in the 1300s and, as it gained popularity, was highly exported to Africa and parts of the Caribbean. The food is particularly bitter, which is how it gets its name, and for that reason has become a staple food in Asian cuisine.

It’s long been known that bitter melon is good for human health, particularly because it’s low in calories. At just 20 calories per cup, you can satisfy hunger cravings without filling up on large amounts of calories. Additionally, bitter melon is packed with vitamins and nutrients. Some of the nutritional benefits it provides includes significant servings of vitamins A, B6, C and D. Additionally, it’s packed with calcium, iron and magnesium.

Beyond these essential nutrients, research has found that bitter melon may be responsible for helping us guard against common health conditions that can affect longevity and overall quality of life. For instance, some recent research has found that bitter melon may encourage healthy cell growth, helping to protect against the spread of certain types of cancer.

How Does Bitter Melon Promote Healthy Cell Growth?

A study conducted at Missouri’s Saint Louis University used mice to determine how bitter melon affected the development and spread of cancerous tumors. In the first stage of the study, bitter melon extract was injected into various types of cancer cells, including those from breast and prostate cancer subjects. In this initial part of the research, it was found that the extract seemed to prevent the spread of cancer cells, but Professor Ratna Ray, who headed the project, wanted to confirm those findings.

Using laboratory mice with tongue cancer, the research team looked to see how and why bitter melon appeared to discourage the spread of cancerous cells. In uninterrupted conditions, the body allows fat and glucose to feed cancer cells, which helps them grow and multiply. However, once the bitter melon extract was introduced into the cancer cells, those cells were no longer able to draw nourishment from that process. As a result, cancer cells were unable to continue to spread.

The results were similar in other types of animal testing, showing that the bitter melon extract limited cancer growth by nearly 50 percent in all studies. Additionally, the extract was able to kill the cancer cells to which it was exposed in some of the tests.

While these results are promising, Professor Ray says results in human subjects may differ. She hopes to duplicate the findings in human cancer patients to prove that bitter melon can be effective in promoting healthy cell growth and discouraging the spread of various types of cancer. In the meantime, bitter melon is still a healthy food and can benefit anyone who adds it to their diet. In fact, there are many more health benefits of bitter melon; some of them are listed below.

Additional Health Benefits of Bitter Melon

Helps Manage Blood Sugar Levels

In a 90-day study, researchers monitored the blood sugar levels for 24 adults, who were administered daily doses of bitter melon extract. They found that the 2,000 mg daily dose of bitter melon was sufficient to lower blood sugar levels and keep hemoglobin A1c regulated. Hemoglobin A1c is used to test the glucose levels in diabetics.

In a similar study, but with 40 participants, the same amount of bitter melon was helpful in moderating blood sugar levels. More importantly, the researchers in this study found that the bitter melon extract decreased the amount of fructosamine. Lower fructosamine meant subjects exhibited better regulated blood sugar over a longer period of time.

Boosts Heart Health

An individual with high cholesterol will develop the buildup of plaque in their blood vessels, which can interfere with the functioning of the heart. Since slower blood flow forces the heart to work harder, the risk of heart failure is increased.

In a study on bitter melon extract, researchers found that the fruit helped reduce cholesterol levels in mice. As a result, heart health was improved, and the risk of heart failure was reduced. In a related study, researchers noted that the amount of bitter melon administered correlated to the amount of cholesterol in the blood, meaning greater amounts of bitter melon reduced cholesterol levels by that much more.

Helps Weight Loss

Finally, bitter melon can help you maintain a healthy weight in two ways. As previously mentioned, it’s a low-calorie food, so you can eat more of it without ingesting a high amount of calories. Additionally, each one-cup serving contains two grams of fiber. Since the digestive system takes longer to process fiber, foods that are high in fiber help us to manager hunger and appetite. This ensures you’ll eat less, so your body will burn more stored fat throughout the day.

There’s also research that suggests bitter melon is effective in helping the body burn more belly fat. Subjects in one study were given a daily dose of 4.8 grams of bitter melon extract. They lost about 0.5 inches, or 1.3 cm, of their stomach circumference over a seven week trial period.

Even as research continues to discover the benefits that bitter melon provides, it’s already clear that this fruit is beneficial to human health. Taking a supplement that contains bitter melon can help you stay healthier, and may protect cellular health and heart health, help you to maintain a healthy weight, and help maintain healthy blood sugar levels. While it shouldn’t be viewed as a cure in itself, it can help you better control your health by possibly reducing risks to your overall health.

Is Resveratrol Responsible for the Health Benefits of Red Wine?

Apr 30 by Ewcopywriting

While there are many proven health benefits of red wine, the majority can be attributed to one specific compound found in the grapes used to make the wine. This plant constituent is called resveratrol, and it’s the compound that helps give color to the skin of red grapes. It also helps protect grapes from fungal infections, droughts, extreme sun exposure and other environmental threats. While the resveratrol in red grapes helps the plant thrive in adverse environmental conditions, the protections it provides are not restricted to plant life.

Resveratrol: A Potent Antioxidant

Aside from the protective role it plays in grape plants, resveratrol contains antioxidants that are also extremely beneficial to human health. The high content of resveratrol in red wine delivers powerful antioxidants into the blood supply, which help to protect against free radicals in the body.

Free radicals are molecules that oxidize the cells throughout the body, making them more susceptible to damage and infection. The number of free radicals rises during times of stress and when an individual suffers from chronic inflammation, causing an increase in the risks of developing obesity, metabolic syndrome, cancer and other disorders. However, the antioxidants that resveratrol provides help to destabilize free radicals and eliminate their ability to negatively affect other molecules throughout the body.

Antioxidants protect us from free radicals in other ways as well. By allowing free radicals to oxidize the antioxidants themselves, the free radicals are discouraged from going after the healthy cells in the body. This reduces the overall number of free radicals circulating in the body, helping to decrease the risk of certain illnesses.

Resveratrol is one of the best compounds from which to derive antioxidant support because the body is able to absorb it with little difficulty. This plant constituent is also very active, which means its antioxidant power is readily available for use. So, in addition to being beneficial once introduced into the body, resveratrol makes it easier for the body to absorb antioxidants. This process allows resveratrol to promote several specific health benefits, such as those listed below.

What Are the Health Benefits of Red Wine?

Heart Health

There have been several studies over the years that have established a link between drinking red wine in moderation and exhibiting better heart health. In particular, a study conducted last year found that drinking red wine could reduce the risks of developing coronary heart disease, which is a condition that’s responsible for the most U.S. deaths. To achieve these benefits without experiencing the negative effects that alcohol can bring, men should limit themselves to two glasses of red wine per day, while women should only drink one glass daily.

Gut Health

The gut microbiome is a community of trillions of microorganisms that help the body function. This community relies on the introduction of a diverse selection of bacteria, derived from natural sources. The resveratrol and other compounds found in red wine act as prebiotics, which the gut uses to promote a more varied array of helpful bacteria. While research concerning the effects of red wine on the gut microbiome continue, current findings suggest the prebiotics red wine provides are helpful in maintaining a healthy gut.

Type 2 Diabetes

While drinking other types of alcoholic beverages may actually pose a greater risk to those suffering from type 2 diabetes, drinking red wine may be helpful. In a 2015 study, subjects who drank red wine exhibited lower blood sugar levels, which researchers attributed to the ethanol in the wine. They believe the ethanol and the natural compounds in the red grapes used to make the wine worked together to improve the metabolism of the subjects.

Hypertension

One of the more commonly known benefits of red wine is that drinking it in moderation can help to lower blood pressure. It does this by increasing the level of HDL, or good cholesterol, in the blood supply. Resveratrol contains compounds called procyanidins, which act to improve the health of blood vessels throughout the body. In addition to raising HDL levels, this helps ensure healthy blood flow throughout the blood vessels.

Post-Stroke Brain Damage

Drinking red wine after suffering a stroke can help protect against secondary brain damage. This is largely due to the fact that that the antioxidants in resveratrol help to modulate inflammation and oxidative stress, which would otherwise promote more cell death in the brain.

Vision Loss

As we get older, we become more susceptible to conditions that can affect our ability to see well. Partial or complete vision loss can result from glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, cataracts or macular degeneration. Since the antioxidants in red wine help to protect against oxidative stress, the inflammation that increases the risks of developing these conditions is also reduced. While it’s necessary to take other steps to protect your vision, moderate red wine consumption can also help.

Cancer

While excessive alcohol consumption can cause a broad range of health problems, including raising the risks of certain types of cancer, the moderate consumption of red wine can be beneficial. Observational studies have found that women who moderately consume red wine on a regular basis are less likely to develop breast cancer. Researchers believe this is because the wine reduces estrogen levels, while increasing testosterone in older women. While research is ongoing, the occasional glass of red wine may help protect against more types of cancer.