Wine and Health - Scientific Update brings together a group of scientists and clinicians who are internationally recognised as leading experts in this field.
The
aim of the symposium is to review the latest experimental and clinical
research on the effects of wine consumption. Discussions will focus on
the evidence that moderate drinking can reduce heart disease, dementia,
and cancers, while also increasing longevity. The contribution from wine
drinking to the French Paradox, and as a component of the Mediterranean
Diet will be reviewed. Presentations on the biology of polyphenols are
likely to be controversial with evidence that their most important actions
are not due to antioxidant effects. This will provide new insights into
how wine modifies blood vessel function in health and disease. The location
of this meeting will provide an ideal opportunity to taste some of the
most polyphenol-rich wines in the world.
Southwest French paradox
The Greek physician Hippocrates was using wine as an antiseptic, diuretic and sedative as far back as 400 B.C.
Louis Pasteur said (1822-95) : "Wine is the healthiest and most hygienic of drinks".
In 1979, Dr Selwyn St Leger, compared figures for heart disease in men aged 55 to 64 in Europe, North America and Australasia.
France had the lowest number of deaths and the highest wine consumption. At the same time, French epidemiologists observed that the French had relatively low rates of coronary heart disease, despite high consumption of saturated fat. This became known as "The French Paradox".The idea that regular wine-drinking could account for the French paradox was put forward by Dr Serge Renaud in 1991. He also put forward the idea that alcohol's ability to inhibit blood-clotting mechanisms underlines this protective effect. Other recent studies have suggested that wine drinkers may enjoy protection from stroke, peripheral artery disease and dementia.
The French paradox of low levels of heart disease despite high saturated-fat consumption has intrigued wine drinkers since it was first reported - and my research led me to analysing the wines in the Gers area of South-West France where Madiran and Saint-Mont wines are made. If there was truly a French paradox then it was here. Gers has double the national average of men aged 90 or more. So if red wine is the protecting force, then this region's wines must be providing special benefits.
Extract from “The Daily Telegraph” (November 27, 2006)
Wines of Southwest France : live better, live longer
“Here we identify procyanidins as the principal vasoactive polyphenols in red wine and show that they are present at higher concentrations in wines from areas of southwestern France and Sardinia, where traditional production methods ensure that these compounds are efficiently extracted during vinification. These regions also happen to be associated with increased longevity in the population.[...]
In France, there are marked regional variations in mortality from coronary heart disease. We used the 1999 census data to identify unusual patterns of ageing in France (see supplementary information) and found that there are relatively more men aged 75 or over in the département of Gers in the Midi-Pyrenees in Southwest France.”
Extract from “Nature” vol 444 / 30 november 2006
A research carried out by Roger Corder
