“WINE, A KEY ELEMENT IN THE MEDITERRANEAN DIET, HAS IMPORTANT BENEFITS FOR CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES, AND NOW WE HAVE THE SCIENTIFIC BASIS TO SAY SO, LOUIS IGNARRO THE 1998 NOBEL PRIZE WINNER FOR MEDICINE, TOLD WINENEWS

VIDEO winenews.tv

“Red wine has great therapeutic potential, and now, in support of what has been known for many centuries, we have the scientific basis to say so”. Louis Ignarro, winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1998



It has been common knowledge for years, even centuries, that red wine, drunk in moderation, has beneficial effects on our body. But when the winner of the Nobel Prize for Medicine, the American Louis Ignarro (his name reveals Italian descent), sustains this affirmation, the “they say” takes on scientific meaning.

“Red wine,” explains Louis Ignarro to WineNews, “has great therapeutic potential. It has been one of the universally recognized virtues of wine for many centuries, and is also one of the reasons why the Mediterranean diet is considered the healthiest diet in the world”. An ode not to only wine, but to the way of living and eating of which Italy is the front runner in the world, because of its wealth of top quality products. “Let’s have a look at the Mediterranean diet: there is a lot of fish, red meats, lots of vegetables, fruits, cereals, and when the Italians need to use fat they use olive oil, which has a tremendous antioxidant capacity”.

And then there’s wine, which has always been praised for its therapeutic value. “What, however, we did not know, until very recently were the scientific reasons why red wine is healthy: those who, like me, come from University research, examined it and found that red wine has many antioxidants,” continued the Nobel Prize winner”.

What is the most important antioxidant? “Resveratrol: it was shown how, in the human body, the drug interacts with and activates another chemical element - which I studied for years - nitric oxide. It is extremely important and protects us from blood-based diseases like strokes, heart attacks and even diabetes. This explains why people who follow a Mediterranean diet all their lives, including red wine, are in good health, and greatly reduce the occurrence of cardiovascular disease. This is a great discovery,” Louis Ignarro concluded, “because for many years, we have said that eating and drinking healthily greatly reduces the chances of becoming ill, but today we finally have the scientific basis to say so”.
Good news for all wine lovers who, in moderation, will have another reason to enjoy the daily pleasure of a good glass of red wine. Professor Louis Ignarro says he is “very happy to have learned from my studies that drinking red wine is good for one’s health: it is a pleasure that I have never denied myself, and that I will continue to enjoy”.
Yes, the 1998 winner of the Nobel Prize for medicine, is a true wine fan. He has a personal wine cellar at his villa in Beverly Hills with 5 thousand bottles, of which 3 thousand are Italian wines (he especially loves Brunello), and the rest are almost all from California. He has very little space for French wines, which he considers “too expensive”.