A little red wine for heart health or no alcohol at all?

[Jambalaya]

Pintobean, I like your diamond style! Please tell me you also have a purple-silk-and-leopard-print chaise lounge?

DF, that is slim, at least from where I'm sitting, weight-wise!

Gulp I do have a robe that is double lined (terry inside), with the exterior Purple satin with Olive green leopard print.

It's like I can see through the screen!

Please tell me you swan around wearing that while quaffing your exotic drink!

 

[Jambalaya]

My internist always tells us every year that alcohol is "empty calories". And there is no doubt it is hard on the liver and other organs. I also don't particularly enjoy drinking (except for tequila straight up that is and a few other exceptions) so usually I don't drink. Maybe a few times a year and that's that. I say if you don't love drinking and don't love the effects then don't do it but if you want to drink do so in moderation or less. I am sorry you suffered a bad hangover Jambalaya and hope you are feeling all better now!


And Stephanie Lynn is correct. Alcohol does impede weight loss so if you are trying to lose weight abstain altogether IMO.
Alcohol also raises your Hemoglobin A1 C so something to think about.

Thanks for your input, Missy. I know that you're well-versed in healthy living, so I appreciate your words.

I think for me, alcohol just isn't worth it. I think I'll give it up altogether. I'm not sure if I need to do the non-alcoholic red wine - seems like it's for older people who already have a variety of health problems like diabetes and heart disease.

Thanks for the hangover sympathy. I feel so much better today. I cannot believe how miserable I felt. And people do that on a regular basis?? Honestly, if a law was made today saying alcohol was illegal, I wouldn't really care.

 

[partgypsy]

My internist always tells us every year that alcohol is "empty calories". And there is no doubt it is hard on the liver and other organs. I also don't particularly enjoy drinking (except for tequila straight up that is and a few other exceptions) so usually I don't drink. Maybe a few times a year and that's that. I say if you don't love drinking and don't love the effects then don't do it but if you want to drink do so in moderation or less. I am sorry you suffered a bad hangover Jambalaya and hope you are feeling all better now!


And Stephanie Lynn is correct. Alcohol does impede weight loss so if you are trying to lose weight abstain altogether IMO.
Alcohol also raises your Hemoglobin A1 C so something to think about.

It's funny I'm a bit on the slim side so for me having a glass of wine with dinner was a way to enjoy the food more and relax me after a long day at work. Because I'm going through a separation and actually ended up losing weight from all the anguish, I figure I can "afford" it. I had a mixed drink at a bar and it was really nice, so for upcoming 4th of July ended up buying 3! bottles of alcohol and mixers to make drinks. But most people were out of town and I ended up not planning anything, so the bottles are still sitting there unopened. Need a reason to throw a party. It is a bottle of bourbon, a bottle of vodka, and a bottle of rum. I got a margarita mix, but someone let me know you use tequila for that. So I need a good white rum or bourbon recipe!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

The consequences of red wine outweigh the benefits if your drink more than half a serving a week (2.5 oz).

 

[Jambalaya]

The consequences of red wine outweigh the benefits if your drink more than half a serving a week (2.5 oz).

Thanks, Tacori! Clarity like that is great. A bottle would last a good long while at 2.5 oz per week! I'm almost tempted to say I could do that with a couple of dark chocolate squares on a Friday evening, but I think it's so much easier to give something up completely. I just instinctively know that my body doesn't get on with alcohol and never has, since being young.

I just went to my local store, and whaddya know, they have the two non-alcoholic wines that received the best reviews and that I wanted to try! I've got the non-alcoholic Arial Cabernet Sauvignon and the non-alcoholic Sutter Fre sparkling wine. They were both $9.99, but there's another store near that I think will also have them and at better prices. I'll investigate.

Taste test results coming up later on this evening!

 

[Jambalaya]

OK, the award-winning Ariel Cabernet Sauvignon is no good. It tastes like what it is - grape juice with the tiniest, teeniest wisp of alcohol. I know hardly anything about wine, so there's no way a red wine connoisseur would be happy with this, I think. I'd probably rather have water. It wasn't horrible or anything. The study says it gave good results so perhaps I'll drink it for a couple of months, the 272 ml per day. Under 100 cals.

I wanted to try the sparkling white, but I can't budge the cork!

 

[Jambalaya]

Since so many people these days don't drink, or are driving, I think these non-alcoholic wines would be good for parties. The fact that they look exactly like real wine so you drink them in wineglasses would add to the party atmosphere, I think, and be more fun to drink than sodas and juice. You could also mix them with fruit juices to make mocktails and serve them in martini glasses or champagne saucers.

 

[Jambalaya]

OK, I managed to get the cork out of the non-alcoholic sparkling wine by Sutter Fre. This is much better than the red. This would be perfect for parties where some or many of the guests don't drink alcohol. The bottle looks like the real thing - nicely presented - the cork made a nice pop, and it's really bubbly. 90 cals for an 8 oz (240 ml) serving. Beware though - it's sweet. 19g of sugars in one serving compared to 10g of sugars for the same serving in the red.

Bottom line, these are great for parties and might even do the trick if you want to give up alcohol but feel really deprived - and the sparkling white is particularly good for that - but really, I'd rather have water.

 

[Jambalaya]

My internist always tells us every year that alcohol is "empty calories". And there is no doubt it is hard on the liver and other organs. I also don't particularly enjoy drinking (except for tequila straight up that is and a few other exceptions) so usually I don't drink. Maybe a few times a year and that's that. I say if you don't love drinking and don't love the effects then don't do it but if you want to drink do so in moderation or less. I am sorry you suffered a bad hangover Jambalaya and hope you are feeling all better now!


And Stephanie Lynn is correct. Alcohol does impede weight loss so if you are trying to lose weight abstain altogether IMO.
Alcohol also raises your Hemoglobin A1 C so something to think about.

It's funny I'm a bit on the slim side so for me having a glass of wine with dinner was a way to enjoy the food more and relax me after a long day at work. Because I'm going through a separation and actually ended up losing weight from all the anguish, I figure I can "afford" it. I had a mixed drink at a bar and it was really nice, so for upcoming 4th of July ended up buying 3! bottles of alcohol and mixers to make drinks. But most people were out of town and I ended up not planning anything, so the bottles are still sitting there unopened. Need a reason to throw a party. It is a bottle of bourbon, a bottle of vodka, and a bottle of rum. I got a margarita mix, but someone let me know you use tequila for that. So I need a good white rum or bourbon recipe!

I'm sorry about your separation, part gypsy. That must be so tough and so stressful. Hugs xxxx

 

[momhappy]

I agree with the others who have said that you can't rely on the ever-changing "research"
I think having a glass of wine every now and then is fine. I wouldn't drink non-alcoholic wines for health benefits, but that's probably more of a personal preference.

 

[Jambalaya]

I don't think I'm going to be buying non-alcoholic wines. There must be a myriad of ways to get the same health benefits as you get from the non-alcoholic red, such as eating red grapes and exercising.

The non-alcoholic red really isn't very nice, and the sparkling non-alcoholic white is much nicer...but loaded with sugar!

In both cases, I'd rather just have water.

 

[Jambalaya]

Ada - I'm replying to you in this thread, as I was trying to let the other one drop down the list, so we don't have two related threads as it's more clicking back and forth for people.

I don't really think I was roofied; it was a nice place and my companion would never have done that. We were being served by a pleasant middle-age woman who's married with kids.

And thanks for the hair of the dog advice, but it's not for me. My nausea was so bad...never drinking again!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

People overestimate the benefits of wine. Like sugar, it is fine in moderation for *most* people, but I know a great deal of people who are heavy drinkers without even knowing it (national guidelines are over 7 servings a week for a female). I work in the addiction field and specialize in solid organ transplant. So unfortunately I see the very real downside of alcohol everyday. I stay up to date on the research.

 

[House Cat]

I would never drink any kind of alcohol for "health benefits."

Resveratrol is the chemical people are looking for when they are drinking wine for health benefits. It is present in grapes, grape juice, peanuts, pistachios, cranberries, blueberries, cocoa, and even dark chocolate.

Personally, I would stay away from the super sugary containing foods if you are worried about heart health. Sugar and white flour are the worst for your heart. A little bit of dark chocolate would be fine. The fruits are great. I drink unsweetened cranberry juice diluted in water all of the time...it's sour, but I like it.

 

[monarch64]

I would never drink any kind of alcohol for "health benefits."

Resveratrol is the chemical people are looking for when they are drinking wine for health benefits. It is present in grapes, grape juice, peanuts, pistachios, cranberries, blueberries, cocoa, and even dark chocolate.

Personally, I would stay away from the super sugary containing foods if you are worried about heart health. Sugar and white flour are the worst for your heart. A little bit of dark chocolate would be fine. The fruits are great. I drink unsweetened cranberry juice diluted in water all of the time...it's sour, but I like it.

Seconded! I was reading this thread, thinking, "why not just eat fresh, organically grown grapes?" I'd save the hassle and expense of purchasing non-alcoholic wines for celebrations instead of trying to get your dose of resveratrol from them.

 

[Jambalaya]

House Cat and Monarch - thanks. I wanted to try non-alcoholic wine in case it was any good, but it isn't. One doesn't taste good and the other is too sugary. Agree you can get the good stuff from other sources, for sure. Thanks for the specific list of foods.

Phoenix - thanks. The hangover lasted only from when I woke up, about 11am, till 6 pm. I mean, I still felt very tired but the headache and nausea went. I'm fine now. I'm quite shocked at how bad a hangover feels! I had hardly eaten anything in the day and the Bailey's was large - and two glasses of wine has always been a lot for me, unless I have a large meal and drink it over two/three hours. There also was not much rice in the half-order. I just wasn't paying attention, and I had so much to do on Sunday - still catching up. I'm never letting it happen again. Good for you, giving up drinking!

Tacori - I agree about the health benefits of red wine and other alcohol being overestimated (and also about the amount drank being underestimated). There has been a LOT of publicity in recent years saying the red wine drinkers have lower rates of heart disease etc. when other factors are controlled for, and I think it hasn't been helpful when the truth seems to be that, on balance, it's better to abstain from a pure health point of view. (I'm not saying that others shouldn't drink - if people really enjoy it then a few glasses of wine a week isn't going to hurt, it's just that I don't enjoy it enough to carry on with it.)