Meanwhile: "When it comes to cancer, no amount of alcohol is safe." http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/824237
Version without login: http://www.meltingmama.net/files/noamountofalcoholissafe.pdf
Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
21–30 of 36 posts
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#22It always surprises me when people focus on one small part of a diet that they hope is some kind of super-cure (or in this case, they want an excuse to drink red wine more often). Of course red wine on it's own isn't going to do anything for you, it's your entire diet and lifestyle that matters. Look at the real reasons (which studies like this one do not mention at all) the French likely have less heart disease and…
You forgot a few: - The French smoke like chimneys - Drink some form of alcohol daily - Are dedicated carnivores (vegetarians are rare) I come here a few months a year (south of France) and it always amazes me how healthy everyone appears to be despite the excess of "sin" the French revel in. Lifestyle obviously comes into play in terms of longevity (I believe the world's oldest woman was French and she smoked modera…
> - The French smoke like chimneys
In Italy, this is actually changing fairly quickly. 10+ years ago, they banned smoking indoors, and I figure that, like a lot of rules here, people would sort of pay attention for a few weeks and then gradually ignore it, but the reality is that it's actually been fairly strictly enforced/followed, and people are happy with the results. Smoking is still more common than in the US, but diminishing.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#23Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's a book that covers this nicely. It's written by a women that moved from Vancouver BC (although us Canadians hate to admit it, we eat like Americans) to France with her French husband. It covers the realm of French culture surrounding eating. The most interesting part to me was the school lunches. It is frowned upon to send your kid to school with a lunch. Kids are expected to eat what is given to them, whatev…
I taught English in a French school. The cafeteria lunches, at least in my region, were excellent. You had a baguette and salad, an appetizer, a main course, and a desert. Some schools served wine. All the meals were very well done with sauces and fresh ingredients. Nothing processed, everything was cooked from scratch. Beats what most people in North America make on their own.
Sounds incredible, something I think would be hard to implement after years of corporate food contracts.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#24Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's a book that covers this nicely. It's written by a women that moved from Vancouver BC (although us Canadians hate to admit it, we eat like Americans) to France with her French husband. It covers the realm of French culture surrounding eating. The most interesting part to me was the school lunches. It is frowned upon to send your kid to school with a lunch. Kids are expected to eat what is given to them, whatev…
I taught English in a French school. The cafeteria lunches, at least in my region, were excellent. You had a baguette and salad, an appetizer, a main course, and a desert. Some schools served wine. All the meals were very well done with sauces and fresh ingredients. Nothing processed, everything was cooked from scratch. Beats what most people in North America make on their own.
I think you had a lucky experience. In reality, most french schools have to make do with a limited budget per child (depending on how wealthy the region of the school is). It is true though that they have nutritional guidelines to follow and that they try to make the companies that provide the lunches (usually they are received in the morning and then prepared by the school's cook) work harder towards a balanced diet and good quality ingredients.
Source: a family friend of mine was a cook who was managing these things for my region.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#25It always surprises me when people focus on one small part of a diet that they hope is some kind of super-cure (or in this case, they want an excuse to drink red wine more often). Of course red wine on it's own isn't going to do anything for you, it's your entire diet and lifestyle that matters. Look at the real reasons (which studies like this one do not mention at all) the French likely have less heart disease and…
There is quite a pleasant little recipe book, 'French Women Don't Get Fat' that correlates nicely with your points.
I'd expect people who eat a piece of chocolate with coffee and have a glass of wine with their meals are simply happier and less stressed overall.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
You forgot a few: - The French smoke like chimneys - Drink some form of alcohol daily - Are dedicated carnivores (vegetarians are rare) I come here a few months a year (south of France) and it always amazes me how healthy everyone appears to be despite the excess of "sin" the French revel in. Lifestyle obviously comes into play in terms of longevity (I believe the world's oldest woman was French and she smoked modera…
> - The French smoke like chimneys In Italy, this is actually changing fairly quickly. 10+ years ago, they banned smoking indoors, and I figure that, like a lot of rules here, people would sort of pay attention for a few weeks and then gradually ignore it, but the reality is that it's actually been fairly strictly enforced/followed, and people are happy with the results. Smoking is still more common than in the US, b…
It's changing in France also. I'm old and most of my French friends are old and not one of them smokes. This is obviously anecdotal and selection bias, but in my 20+ years of observing I've noticed that restaurants have gone from smoke filled rooms in which everyone is smoking to the occasional smoker at the table next to you.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
You forgot a few: - The French smoke like chimneys - Drink some form of alcohol daily - Are dedicated carnivores (vegetarians are rare) I come here a few months a year (south of France) and it always amazes me how healthy everyone appears to be despite the excess of "sin" the French revel in. Lifestyle obviously comes into play in terms of longevity (I believe the world's oldest woman was French and she smoked modera…
> - The French smoke like chimneys In Italy, this is actually changing fairly quickly. 10+ years ago, they banned smoking indoors, and I figure that, like a lot of rules here, people would sort of pay attention for a few weeks and then gradually ignore it, but the reality is that it's actually been fairly strictly enforced/followed, and people are happy with the results. Smoking is still more common than in the US, b…
> happy with results
I'll predict expanding waist lines and increasing obesity rates.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#28Big f'in surprise. Any instance of "X food substance will make you healthier all by itself" is bullshit.
Well in rat experiments a little bit of alcohol in their water makes them live longer. The supposed mechanism is that alcohol helps keep intestinal bacteria in check and reduces endotoxin absorption. There are various other reasons to think that in most people light alcohol intake is protective. I don't think wine has anything to do with it. The safest drink would be a high quality vodka.
The vodka would need to be diluted prior to ingestion to qualify as safe.
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#29Meanwhile: "When it comes to cancer, no amount of alcohol is safe." http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/824237
Also alcohol is pretty costly in terms of our economy:
Re: Red wine health benefits 'overhyped'
#30most of what I've read that speaks of health benefits (cancer free + longevity) also mention that you'd have to get the resveratrol from a supplement because its unhealthy to drink the large number of glasses of wine per day.
eg: "The Linus Pauling Institute has an interesting table that displays the resveratrol levels of various wines, showing that an average glass of red wine will range from 0.2 to 2.0 mg per glass of wine. In contrast, the typical resveratrol supplement contains anywhere from 100 mg of resveratrol to 500 mg of resveratrol per capsule" --- http://wine.about.com/od/wineandhealth/a/Red-Wine-And-Resver...