An alcoholic drink could lower your cholesterol when consumed in moderation

The end of the year is a time when many people indulge in festive treats, including alcohol. Like any time of the year, alcohol misuse can result in damage to your health. But certain alcoholic drinks, when consumed in moderation, could provide some benefits.

According to Dr Deborah Lee, of Dr Fox Online Pharmacy, red wine has favourable effects on the cardiovascular system. It can lower both blood pressure and cholesterol.

Lower blood pressure

Polyphenols are plant substances which have been found to have a blood pressure-lowering effect. Dr Lee explained: “Red wine has a high polyphenol content, especially resveratrol, a potent antioxidant, which is known to improve endothelial function (the cells lining blood vessel walls that cause the vessel to constrict or relax).

“In a 2015 double-blind crossover study, 60 individuals with mild untreated hypertension drank either grape juice or grape juice with red wine extract and then swapped over.

“The results showed that only the grape juice with red wine extract lowered blood pressure – the grape juice alone had no effect. The red wine/grape extract lowered systolic blood pressure (upper reading) by an average of 3 mmHg, and diastolic blood pressure (lower reading) by an average of 2 mmHg.

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“This may seem a small reduction, but when extrapolated for the population as a whole, this works out as an overall total risk reduction of 10 percent for a stroke or a heart attack.”

Lower cholesterol

Drinking red wine raises HDL cholesterol (‘good’ cholesterol) and lowers LDL cholesterol (‘bad’ cholesterol) – both of which are favourable changes in the lipid profile, said Dr Lee.

She added: “In a 2005 randomised controlled trial, 69 healthy men and women aged 38-74 were asked to drink one of the following four options: red wine, water plus grape extract tablets, water and half dose wine extract tablets or water plus a placebo, for four weeks.

“Drinking wine was found to result in an 11 percent-16 percent increase in HDL cholesterol, but this was not seen in the other groups.

“Other studies have shown that red wine significantly lowers LDL (‘bad’ cholesterol).

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“Drinking alcohol in moderation helps prevent atherosclerosis (the build-up of fatty plaques in the arteries), probably because alcohol increases the transport rate of apolipoproteins – these are proteins that transport fat from the intestines.”

Other ingredients in mulled wine that could provide health benefits

Some of the other ingredients of mulled wine have also been found to benefit cardiovascular health, said Dr Lee.

• Cinnamon contains cinnamaldehyde which is a powerful vasodilator.
• Vitamin C, found in large quantities in oranges and lemons, is a powerful antioxidant and facilitates the effects of nitric oxide on the endothelium to cause vasodilation.
• Ginger acts as a natural calcium blocker, relaxing smooth muscle in blood vessel walls and causing blood vessels to dilate.
• Cloves contain eugenol which is believed to have anticancer properties. (However, research studies use clove oil, and excess clove oil can cause liver damage. But in small doses, clove oil can improve liver function.) Cloves also contain nigericin which can improve the uptake and metabolism of glucose.
• Star anise is an herb which has been used for centuries as a Chinese medicine. It is a powerful antioxidant and has antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties.

How much mulled wine should you drink to get the benefits?

The problem is that mulled wine contains alcohol and drinking excess alcohol has serious long term health consequences.

To get the health benefits, mulled wine should be drunk occasionally, and in small amounts, advised Dr Lee.

She said: “I would suggest you don’t drink any more than 2 x 175 ml glasses of red wine at any one time. This should be around five to six units of alcohol, but take care to drink less if spirits have been added, as sometimes vodka, brandy or other spirits are often added to mulled wine, and these will significantly increase the alcohol content.

“Drinking any more than six units at any one time for a woman and eight units for a man is binge-drinking.

“The NHS advises not drinking more than 14 units of alcohol per week. This should be spread over seven days, with a few alcohol-free days in between. There is no safe limit to drinking alcohol.

“Drinking too much alcohol over a long period, such as 10 to 20 years, increases the risk of stroke, heart attack, brain damage, liver damage, neurological problems and seven different types of cancer – oropharynx (mouth), larynx, oesophagus (throat), liver, colon and rectum (bowel) and breast cancer.”

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