How can the French consume the same amount of saturated fat in their diets as American's do, smoke more cigarettes then we do and still have one-third less the amount of fatal heart attacks? If you read the results of the French Paradox Study, you may be surprised.
The answer is resveratrol.
A powerful antioxidant that is found in the red wine that the French drink.
Resveratrol is produced by many plants, but is especially abundant in grape skins.
The high amount of resveratrol that is found in the grape skins protects the fruit from fungus and sun damage.
Red wine which is fermented in grape skins is consumed on a regular basis by the French.
With the high antioxidant content of the red wine, the French are protecting their hearts..
The study results were first aired on a "60 Minute Special.
" The effects of moderate drinking of red wine was to be determined, but first the word moderate had to be defined.
Some participants of the study thought the definition of moderate drinking meant one bottle, other's thought two or three.
Once the term moderate was determined to be one or two glasses, the study could begin.
The French National Institute of Health Research developed the program which was named the French Paradox Study, under the supervision of Dr.
Serg Renaud.
Results of this study concluded that 20-30 grams of alcohol a day reduced heart disease by 40%.
Other studies soon followed with the same impressive results.
In Coppenhagen a study was performed with 13,000 participants.
These Danish citizens consumed moderate amounts of alcohol under one of the largest studies of it's kind and found the same beneficial results as the French Paradox.
Drinking red wine gave significantly better results than consuming other alcoholic beverages.
Beer and hard liquor carry little to none, of this highly potent antioxidant.
The studies findings concluded that drinking red wine did protect the heart, although a finding by Dr.
Arthur Klatsky in California noted that binge drinking even on occasion, diminishes some of the benefits.
There are other great sources of resveratrol that can be consumed if one does not like drinking red wine.
Resveratrol can be found in grapes, blueberries, peanuts, peanut sprouts and Japaneses knotweed shoots eaten before they get tough and woody (between the months of April -May).
For thousands of years it has been thought that red wine was a healthful drink for the heart.
With the conclusion of the French Paradox Study it is now proven that the old Roman saying, " In Vino Sanitas," ( In wine there is health) is scientifically correct.