Often blamed for societal woes, wine has been proven by modern science to yield health benefits, specifically to the heart. Among the earliest and perhaps most popular of such suppositions is the so called "French paradox." The French paradox is a reference to the low incidence of heart ailment among French despite their diet being relatively rich in saturated fat. This was attributed to the fact that in France, red wine is regularly consumed on mealtime. The Irish doctor Samuel Black first noted the French paradox in 1819.

Wine is an alcoholic beverage produced by the fermentation of grape juice. Men may have been producing and drinking wine since 8,000 years ago as indicated by recent archeological findings. A 1996 issue of Archeology Magazine published an article stating that a Neolithic village site in Iran could have been the home of the world's earliest wine. Today, new scientific findings on the health benefits of wine are boosting once again the consumption of wine.

The media buzz on the health benefits of wine can be traced back to a feature on the healthy effects of red wine by the popular American TV program 60 Minutes in 1991. That particular segment was said to have cause an upsurge of the global demand on red wine with some manufacturers even lobbying for their wines to be labeled as "health food."

Based on scientific research, resveratrol is one component of red wine that is linked to longevity and cancer prevention. Some experts argue though that its concentration in wine is not enough to elicit the French paradox. In addition to resveratrol the scientific team led by Professor Roger Corder have pinpointed a particular group of chemical substance polyphenol, known as oligomeric procyanidins in wine. Their study suggests that these components of wine give the greatest degree of protection to human blood-vessel cells.

A more recent study conducted by Wilhelm Vetter, MD and his team at the University Hospital of Zurich, Switzerland suggests that wine consumed during mealtime can slow down the production of smooth muscle cells (SMC) on the arterial walls. Medical research has proven that SMC growth is the main factor in the development of atherosclerosis (a chronic inflammatory response in the walls of arteries) leading to heart attack and stroke.

So, what degree of wine consumption is considered healthy? Previous studies have suggested that drinking a glass of wine a day can yield the necessary cardiovascular benefits.

This leads many to wonder if, given the high cost of wine in the Philippines, it is possible for the common Pinoy to elicit the French paradox by drinking beer. A 16-year study conducted by Dr. Thomas Truelsen of Copenhagen University Hospital published in the December, 1998 issue of the Journal of the American Heart Association, says there is no association between intake of beer or spirits on the risk of stroke.