1 glass of wine 🍷 rule

misskherrington

Ok what’s the truth on this? Is having more than 1 not giving me benefits

cwolfman13

The "benefits" of drinking a glass of wine have largely been debunked. Basically wine has resveratrol which was discovered to have some heart health benefits as well as cancer fighting properties so everyone just ran with "wine is healthy and has benefits"...but ultimately, the ethanol in even just one glass pretty much negates the minimal benefits from a very small amount of resveratrol in a glass of red wine.

At this point, research shows that resveratrol can inhibit cancer development, however, most of this evidence comes from cell studies in laboratory settings with concentrations of resveratrol much higher than a human would likely ever ingest even eating or drinking all of the foods with resveratrol as the amounts are so trace.

I say enjoy your wine if you will, but not under the guise of it being a "health food" with benefits.

AnnPT77

Wine is relatively calorie dense, and relatively nutrient sparse. It can also be kind of fun and delicious, in moderation. It can also be very unhealthful - literally poisonous - in excess.

It's going to be very difficult to include lots of wine, regularly, in a calorie-appropriate way of eating, and still get adequate overall nutrition. In other words, someone drinking a lot of wine will tend to get too many calories (gain weight) or too little nutrition (degrade health) or - at worst - both.

How much wine is too much? It varies. Many health authorities say 1 (one) glass per day for women, probably not every day of the week, is OK. That's a 5 ounce (about 148 ml) pour, not a giant vat of it (like those 18 ounce wine glasses they sell nowadays).

So, experts think that with more than one glass, you're veering more toward the poison end of things, away from any potential benefits. Some authorities are now saying zero is recommended.

I'm with Wolfman. The benefits of wine have been oversold. Grape juice will get you those same nutritional benefits (but maybe not the fun or tastiness, though fun and taste are individual preference issues).

The real questions are: How important is your health to you, versus the wine? How many calories can you spend on wine, and still get the weight management benefits you want? How many calories can you spend on wine and still get adequate enough nutrition to maintain the odds of the good health you may want? (I'm talking about enough protein, healthy fats, veggies and fruits.)

Only you can answer the questions about what you're willing to give up, to have the wine.

GaryM_25

misskherrington wrote: »

Ok what’s the truth on this? Is having more than 1 not giving me benefits

Depends. Some people are sad drunks, others happy drunks, others angry drunks. I'd say if alcohol makes you a happy drunk, you have the best chances of "benefits."

willboywonder

The enzyme in wine believed to be helpful is resveratrol, which comes from grapes. So, have a serving or two of grapes a day. Alcohol tends to be high in sugar which could impair your triglyceride numbers; alcohol is also a known carcinogen. The health benefits of drinking alcohol is minimized by these and other potential health risks. Just eat a serving or two of grapes a day. A serving of grapes is about 30. Be sure to portion them out. You don't want to overindulge in them.

AnnPT77

willboywonder wrote: »

The enzyme in wine believed to be helpful is resveratrol, which comes from grapes. So, have a serving or two of grapes a day. Alcohol tends to be high in sugar which could impair your triglyceride numbers; alcohol is also a known carcinogen. The health benefits of drinking alcohol is minimized by these and other potential health risks. Just eat a serving or two of grapes a day. A serving of grapes is about 30. Be sure to portion them out. You don't want to overindulge in them.

Strictly speaking, alcohol is not high in sugar. Alcohol is alcohol, not a carb (nor protein nor fat) at all. Most alcoholic beverages contain some sugar. There's negligible sugar in clear liquors like vodka, rum, etc. Alcohol is believed to raise triglycerides itself, though.

I'd speculate that people believe alcohol is high in sugar because a lot of sugar goes into making alcohol. The sugar is broken down in a chemical process (fermentation), and to the extent that it's broken down, it's no longer sugar, it's alcohol. Some alcoholic drinks, such as wine among others, do contain residual sugar that wasn't broken down into alcohol.

willboywonder

AnnPT77 wrote: »

willboywonder wrote: »

The enzyme in wine believed to be helpful is resveratrol, which comes from grapes. So, have a serving or two of grapes a day. Alcohol tends to be high in sugar which could impair your triglyceride numbers; alcohol is also a known carcinogen. The health benefits of drinking alcohol is minimized by these and other potential health risks. Just eat a serving or two of grapes a day. A serving of grapes is about 30. Be sure to portion them out. You don't want to overindulge in them.

Strictly speaking, alcohol is not high in sugar. Alcohol is alcohol, not a carb (nor protein nor fat) at all. Most alcoholic beverages contain some sugar. There's negligible sugar in clear liquors like vodka, rum, etc. Alcohol is believed to raise triglycerides itself, though.

I'd speculate that people believe alcohol is high in sugar because a lot of sugar goes into making alcohol. The sugar is broken down in a chemical process (fermentation), and to the extent that it's broken down, it's no longer sugar, it's alcohol. Some alcoholic drinks, such as wine among others, do contain residual sugar that wasn't broken down into alcohol.

I had no idea. Thank you for telling me. The Stella Rosa Black wine I used to drink, according to My Fitness Pal, logs it at 23 grams of sugar, so I'm very confused. I need to research it some more. I'm glad you brought it to my attention.

AnnPT77

willboywonder wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

willboywonder wrote: »

The enzyme in wine believed to be helpful is resveratrol, which comes from grapes. So, have a serving or two of grapes a day. Alcohol tends to be high in sugar which could impair your triglyceride numbers; alcohol is also a known carcinogen. The health benefits of drinking alcohol is minimized by these and other potential health risks. Just eat a serving or two of grapes a day. A serving of grapes is about 30. Be sure to portion them out. You don't want to overindulge in them.

Strictly speaking, alcohol is not high in sugar. Alcohol is alcohol, not a carb (nor protein nor fat) at all. Most alcoholic beverages contain some sugar. There's negligible sugar in clear liquors like vodka, rum, etc. Alcohol is believed to raise triglycerides itself, though.

I'd speculate that people believe alcohol is high in sugar because a lot of sugar goes into making alcohol. The sugar is broken down in a chemical process (fermentation), and to the extent that it's broken down, it's no longer sugar, it's alcohol. Some alcoholic drinks, such as wine among others, do contain residual sugar that wasn't broken down into alcohol.

I had no idea. Thank you for telling me. The Stella Rosa Black wine I used to drink, according to My Fitness Pal, logs it at 23 grams of sugar, so I'm very confused. I need to research it some more. I'm glad you brought it to my attention.

Remember that the database is crowd sourced: Entered by regular users. Not everyone is accurate.

IME, the entries for alcoholic drinks are more likely than average to be wrong. Among other things, U.S. labeling requirements for them aren't as informative nutritionally, so people wing it. The standard labels have neither calories nor nutrients, just alcohol percent, proof, or ABV.

Interestingly, that wine does have a nutrition label (though I have some reservations about its accuracy that I won't belabor). Based on that, 23g of sugar in a 6 ounce pour is correct.

The Stella Rosa Black is reportedly a sweet, low alcohol red blend, so probably more residual sugar than other reds. Plus the label lists ingredients other than wine.

If something has 23 grams of sugar, that accounts for around 92 calories. It lists 5% alcohol, so roughly 0.3 oz alcohol in 6 oz. A fluid ounce of ethanol is about 23.2g. In round numbers and rough calculation, that's mean about 7g of alcohol in 6oz of that wine, if I do the math right (I don't always 😉). That would be about 49 calories of alcohol.

So, 160 calories per 6oz per the label, and that would account for 141 of them (92+49), which is within the 20% wiggle factor.

Bottom line: Your preferred wine is very high in sugar, relative to even other wines. Dry reds can have under 10 grams/liter residual sugar. This one has 23g (arguably not all residual) in only 187ml, so around 123g/l sugar (again, if I do the math right). That would put it, sugar wise, between wines like Moscato or sweet Riesling, and dessert wines.

So, yup, choose a sweet wine, get quite a lot of sugar. Choose plain vodka, get no sugar.

joanthemom8

All I know is that when I stop drinking my wine, I lose weight. So, I try to be AF as much as possible, but I do slip now and then.

slowolf50

I love my wine but if you want to lose weight seriously it's best to avoid it. I was losing weight while averaging a couple glasses a day, then joined a local gym and increased my weight loss. I quit the wine for about a month and a half, and kept up with the gym and the weight really came off. Once I hit my goal weight, I started up the wine and my weight loss has stabilized with a slight downward trend, but I still workout at the gym for 80 minutes a day (45 min cardio, 35 weights), five days on and one day off a week. I've lost about 40 lbs since Thanksgiving, and am now losing maybe a half pound a week. I am about 6'1, and now about 210 pounds, 14% bodyfat, and 66 years old. It's basically calories in, and calories out, but the nutrition factor comes into play as well, and alcohol has no nutritional value, so with limited caloric intake while losing weight, nutrition is most important.

If I didn't drink wine, I would probably be healthier, but wine makes me happier and I really enjoy it. I stick to dry reds and whites to save on sugar, calories, and carbs, as opposed to sweet wines like Stella, and sometimes I drink vodka or good bourbon to save some extra calories. I'm not an advocate for wine, but do what makes you happy. Discipline is key so MFP journal every day...and be honest about it.

gobobbygo

There used to be some folk wisdom that drinking in moderation wasn't just not-bad for you, but actually good for you. This was based on some studies that compared health outcomes of moderate drinkers vs heavy drinkers vs nondrinkers --> the moderate drinkers generally came out ahead. But it turned out this was because the "non-drinkers" set included people who didn't drink for health reasons, either because of dependencies/recovery or for having conditions for which any alcohol was a serious risk. When corrected for this, added life/health for moderate drinking vs nondrinking goes away

So, if you're wondering if, say, having a glass of wine per day is good for your physical health in and of itself, the answer is no

But you're not on this Earth to optimize your physical health at all times in all circumstances, you're here to live. If a glass of wine per day is something that you enjoy, and (and I realize this is a BIG 'and') you don't have a problem with alcohol, it will probably will improve your overall quality of life, whether or not it lengthens it

ggmoo

Hi Everyone,

This post is fascinating!! Really interesting info about the chemistry of it.....I don't drink too often but I do like a wine occasionally. I stick with dry wines and I like reds. I also prefer wines that are not made in the US because they seem to have less sulfites. My favorite wine is a Malbec, but in the summer I've been looking for a lighter wine (red or white) but still dry and doesn't taste like water.

Are there any particular wines that this group has found that are dry, low sugar or more on the healthful end??? Many dry whites for me do not have enough body to them and taste is minimal. I've tried some "orange" or skin on wines last summer but didn't find one I really liked.
So what has everyone found that is a satisfying on the healthful end:
Red
White
Bubbly

j5olson

I will not give up my wine but there are some good ones that are 70 calories (Kim Crawford) so I do that most of the time if I am having a glass. If you are strictly speaking about calories do your research not all wine have a ton of calories. Alot of wine is average 120-150. Just do your budgeting.

RondaBradeen

Why on EARTH does it show white wine as zero carbs/??
Woodbridge etc,
BOGUS!!!

AnnPT77

RondaBradeen wrote: »

Why on EARTH does it show white wine as zero carbs/??
Woodbridge etc,
BOGUS!!!

Repeating myself:

Because the MFP database is crowd-sourced (entered by regular users) and in the US wines aren't required to have nutrition labels (not even calories) so people have no idea how many carbs are in them, and they're usually guessing at the calories.

You know you can edit those entries, or create your own with correct carbs, right? (That's assuming you can figure out the correct carb values . . . .).

Hiawassee88

@slowolf50 If I didn't drink wine, I would probably be healthier, but wine makes me happier and I really enjoy it. I stick to dry reds and whites to save on sugar, calories, and carbs...

Have you tried, FitVine?
https://www.fitvinewine.com/pages/about-us#:~:text=Ferment to dry,than 1 gram of sugar.

https://www.breakthrubev.com/news/2019/fit-vine-wine#:~:text=Perfect Fit for Consumers&text=For health-conscious consumers, a,carbohydrates, and 14.1% alcohol

Sugar 0.06g
Calories 117
Carbohydrates 3.9g
Alcohol 14.1%
Each bottle of wine has less than 1 gram of sugar.
Sidenote: I'm sensitive to alcohol. 🥴 I can have 6-8 oz and never feel like a dingbat. I don't feel any side effects the next day, either. It works for me. 😸 I allow myself some on Friday nights, moderating my portion, of course. 🍀

slowolf50

Hiawassee88 wrote: »

@slowolf50 If I didn't drink wine, I would probably be healthier, but wine makes me happier and I really enjoy it. I stick to dry reds and whites to save on sugar, calories, and carbs...

Have you tried, FitVine?
https://www.fitvinewine.com/pages/about-us#:~:text=Ferment to dry,than 1 gram of sugar.

https://www.breakthrubev.com/news/2019/fit-vine-wine#:~:text=Perfect Fit for Consumers&text=For health-conscious consumers, a,carbohydrates, and 14.1% alcohol

Sugar 0.06g
Calories 117
Carbohydrates 3.9g
Alcohol 14.1%
Each bottle of wine has less than 1 gram of sugar.
Sidenote: I'm sensitive to alcohol. 🥴 I can have 6-8 oz and never feel like a dingbat. I don't feel any side effects the next day, either. It works for me. 😸 I allow myself some on Friday nights, moderating my portion, of course. 🍀

Thank you so much for the information on FitVine! My wife and I have been involved in the Paso Robles wine industry for years so we're kind of wine prejudiced. We really enjoy a good Adelaida or Cass cabernet, syrah, or zinfandel in moderation, but are more than willing to try new flavor, so we may have to try FitVine. I'm really not too concerned about a few extra calories as I burn those off working out. Thanks for the tip!

Magicalmike1

ggmoo wrote: »

Hi Everyone,

This post is fascinating!! Really interesting info about the chemistry of it.....I don't drink too often but I do like a wine occasionally. I stick with dry wines and I like reds. I also prefer wines that are not made in the US because they seem to have less sulfites. My favorite wine is a Malbec, but in the summer I've been looking for a lighter wine (red or white) but still dry and doesn't taste like water.

Are there any particular wines that this group has found that are dry, low sugar or more on the healthful end??? Many dry whites for me do not have enough body to them and taste is minimal. I've tried some "orange" or skin on wines last summer but didn't find one I really liked.
So what has everyone found that is a satisfying on the healthful end:
Red
White
Bubbly

Maybe try a Chardonnay for Summer? I like French Reds Beaujolais ,Bordeaux also Portuguese Dao Bubbly George Mumm when my budget allows or a dry Prosecco/Cava.

Hiawassee88

@slowolf50 I choose this one for the lowest sugar content, and lowest amount of tannins that I can find.
"Proprietary process takes out more tannins, sugars, and histamines.
Our wines average less than 1 gram of sugar per liter or less than 0.09 grams of sugar per 5oz glass, less sugar in an entire bottle than what is in one 5oz glass of the top 10 wine brands in the US."