To Your Health

Q. Is wine better for your heart than grape juice, and does the color count?

A. There is good "test tube" evidence that red wine, white wine, and even beer contain powerful antioxidants that tend to protect us from cardiovascular disease. These antioxidants prevent damage to low-density lipoproteins (LDLs, the so-called bad cholesterol) that lead to formation of artery-clogging plaque in blood-vessel walls.

However, before we can promote alcoholic beverages of any sort for prevention of cardiovascular disease, we will need some careful clinical evaluation. These "test tube" antioxidant effects have not been reliably reproduced in human studies. In fact, in some studies, white wine has enhanced the damage to LDL cholesterol. The possibility exists that the effect of alcohol may outweigh any antioxidant effect.

Taking the second question first, the antioxidant potentials of red wine and white wine are nearly identical and depend on the content of substances called "Oligomeric Proanthocyanidin Compounds" or OPCs. The antioxidant potential or OPC content of wine is directly related to the processing method, and white wine can be produced with antioxidant characteristics similar to those of red wine.

Regarding the first question, the latest studies show that you can get almost all the same benefits from grape juice as from wine. Grape juice appears to be an excellent alternative to wine when it comes to protecting the blood vessels. In a study published in the journal Circulation in 1999, 15 patients who already had clinical signs of cardiovascular disease were instructed to drink a tall glass of grape juice daily. After only two weeks they showed significantly reduced LDL oxidation. Surprisingly, eating table grapes won't provide as much protection. That's because the juice is made by crushing the whole grape, seeds and all, not just the skin and flesh. Grape seeds are especially rich in OPCs.

When compared to wine with the alcohol removed, grape juice had benefits at a much lower dose of OPCs than is found in wine. The antioxidants in grape juice appear to linger in the body longer than do those in wine. What's more, alcoholic drinks don't seem to improve the function of cells the way grape juice does. Alcohol generates free radicals that can actually damage tissues, negating some of the benefits that antioxidants offer. Wine only has maximum benefits when it is consumed at levels high enough to make one legally drunk, while with grape juice you can get the benefit without worrying about becoming intoxicated.

Wine may provide at least one benefit that grape juice doesn't. Alcohol has been shown to increase blood levels of high-density lipoprotein or HDL, the so-called good cholesterol. However, the price may be alcohol-related toxicity and injury to various tissues.

When researchers compared grape juice with orange and grapefruit juice, they came to the conclusion that grape juice is better, at least for the heart. Grape juice may be even more beneficial than aspirin, which is widely recommended as a way of warding off heart attacks. Aspirin or wine will reduce blood platelet activity (blood clotting tendency) by about 45%, but grape juice dampens it by about 75%. Starting the day with a glass of grape juice may be especially good for the heart.