It has been known for years that wine consumption can have positive effects on health, “provided it is done in moderation”. However, there is medical evidence that it is not the alcohol that contains health-promoting properties, but the antioxidants and bioactive substances present in grapes. They are also present in non-alcoholic wine. That is why alcohol-free wine is healthy, without contraindications or moderation.
If you want to enter the world without alcohol, here is our list of the best alcohol-free wines.
Why non-alcoholic wines are healthy
Alcohol-free wine is healthy because it has all the polyphenols of traditional wine, but not a drop of alcohol. The polyphenols contained in grapes are responsible for their characteristic color, aroma, and texture. They also have recognized beneficial properties for the organism. It has been scientifically proven that they have a strong protective effect on cells by inhibiting cell-damaging agents such as toxins and free radicals. Resveratrol, for example, is one of the grape polyphenols for which there is scientific evidence of its role in protecting arteries and cardiovascular health.
Alcohol is not healthy, beware of “moderation”
A recent research from the UK’s Anglia Ruskin University, published in Clinical Nutrition concludes that no amount of alcohol is considered “healthy”. Forget the “in moderation” label that is so often associated with “health”. Alcohol is never healthy, in moderation means that if you drink very little, it doesn’t do as much harm.
More than 440,000 adults were recruited and asked to track their drinking habits – which included beer, cider, wine and spirits – for seven years. The researchers found that drinking even moderate amounts of beer, cider and spirits increases the risk of disease and overall mortality. This was particularly true for cardiovascular, coronary and cerebrovascular diseases (such as stroke) and cancer.
The only healthy result came from red and white wine consumption, which was shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. But from what we’ve seen, that’s due to the bioactive compounds in grapes. With alcohol-free wines, arteries and veins are protected, but toxins and calories associated with alcohol are also avoided.
Benefits of non-alcoholic wine
A new study published in the journal Circulation Research provides interesting results on the effect of non-alcoholic red wine consumption in people at high cardiovascular risk.
The study was carried out at the Hospital Clínic in Barcelona: the effect of gin, wine and non-alcoholic wine consumption on blood pressure in 67 men with diabetes mellitus or cardiovascular risk factors was analysed. Volunteers followed the same diet for four weeks, with one difference: one group drank non-alcoholic red wine, another alcoholic wine and the rest gin, always in moderate amounts. Finally, the results showed that those who drank alcohol-free wine reduced hypertension and their risk of heart attack and stroke by up to 20%.
On the other hand, the reduction in those who drank wine with alcohol was not significant. Those who drank gin did not achieve any reduction in blood pressure. In other words, those who drank non-alcoholic wine had by far the greatest improvement.
Other benefits of alcohol-free wines are:
- Its low calories content, compared to traditional wines, helps maintain your figure. It is a good option if you are on a diet.
- You can drink it if you are pregnant or taking medication that prohibits drinking alcohol.
- It gives you an experience similar to traditional wines. It is not 100% exact, but another high-quality alternative.
- There is a wide variety of options, you will find the one that best suits your tastes.
If you want to know more, we recommend the article about how alcohol-free wine is mad. Enjoy without moderation with non-alcoholic drinks… to your health!
