I have a desire to talk about the value of these two things that are not a good mix together… please don’t think that I am advising you mix the two in a new concoction. :)
But I have been a #firstmiracle kind of guy since well before the hashtag was invented in social media. I love that the first miracle of the one I choose to call Savior, was to turn water into wine. Partially because I love the context of how it went down, but for this article, because I love the value of what a glass of red wine can bring to the body. Again, I do not ignore that there is an addictive potential in people, and that all alcoholic drinks need to be governed.
That being said, the resveratrol in red wine has been repeatedly reported to have significant impact on long term and short term health. From an article published in Nutrition and Healthy Aging we read these statements:
– Resveratrol improves healthspan and lifespan in many organisms. – For the past several decades a number of animal studies, meta-analyses, and recent human clinical trials have focused on the ability of resveratrol (RSV), a naturally occurring polyphenol compound, to combat a variety of diseases such as type-2 diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, neurodegeneration, and cancer (for a comprehensive summary, see [1]) – RSV has been suggested to exert positive benefits on healthspan and lifespan partly by acting as a calorie restriction (CR) mimetic [3, 4] and activator of a family of NAD+– dependent protein deacetylases known as sirtuins [5]
The abstract that gave me this data is available here – https://content.iospress.com/articles/nutrition-and-healthy-aging/nha170035 and is pretty cool read (if you like reading scientific material). But the key to reading this is to then figure out the translational value. Red wine happens to be a good source of resveratrol, but there are many other soureces as well. Pistachios and blueberries are both very good sources, and both foods that I like to promote for their other health benefits, and lack of health consequence. And though I tend to drive the idea of a glass of red wine, white wine also carries a significant amount of resveratrol and can be valuable… it just happens to be loaded with sugar too, and of course that is a no no to me!
Nothing like sitting around a fall fire, sipping a glass of wine, catching up with your spouse. This is a tradition that will serve many positive purposes!
And then there was the coconut. Man, what a controversial nut right now! The Harvard professor who called it pure poison, put coconut oil back on the chopping block earlier this year (NY Times), but I take issue with this professor’s stance because he suggested there is no evidence for its recent popularity. So, in response, here is some evidence.
First – my clinical evidence from observation alone means something. We have seen people improve their energy levels, their weight loss, their cardiovascular profile via blood testing, and their subjective evaluation of their brain function. All are significant, even though not all are quantifiable.
In an article published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition back in 1999, it was found the metabolic rate went up from consuming the oil, which would explain the increase in energy level felt by people when taking it. One year later in the International Journal of Obesity it was found that people put on a diet of coconut oil or butter, had increases in fat burning, as well as significantly better fat burning than a group consuming other fat based foods. Thus we understand the increase in weight loss experienced by some people.
We can go all the way back to 1995 to the Journal of Lipid Research to see research showing that increasing coconut oil had an impact on the HDL numbers in the body. I can say with confidence, that if you continue to follow the blood profiles of people with higher HDL counts, you will see the LDL counts lower, as HDL has the job of packaging and reducing the total LDL in the body. However, on that I have one big statement left to make.
It is WIDELY accepted that cholesterol levels and incidence of heart disease go hand and hand. However, I do not accept it at all. This is wrong, as these two are not directly related. Mevacor came on the market in 1987, and for 31 years we have continued to treat more and more people with statin drugs, while we have seen more and more people die from heart disease. Damaged cholesterol is a problem… normal cholesterol is not a problem, even at high levels. How do you get damaged cholesterol? By eating a diet that creates inflammation.
I have two recommendations for everybody.
Join my 60 Day Turnaround… you can join at any time, but simply going here and signing up, $10 a month for a 12 month period will get you into the group, and understanding how ridiculously important it is to make simple wise choices. 60 Day Turnaround
Get on Juice Plus – the amount of resveratrol present in these foods that make up the Vineyard blend, makes it a perfect addition to anybody’s routine, it has been mine for a decade. https://hsprout.juiceplus.com/us/en
Health is an effort, but with wise decisions, questioning the norm, and grabbing a group of people who are like minded to be around you… you can put yourself on the best path for success.
Be well and Be blessed! – Dr. E