Red wine helps prevent ageing

IF YOU’RE wondering whether to have a little tipple with your Christmas meal, you’ll be delighted to learn that scientists have discovered that red wine helps keep you younger.

France produces some of the world’s finest wines, and now respected journal Nature has reported a glass of red contains resveratrol. According to the study, resveratol “mimics another amino acid - tyrosin - found naturally in the body that is involved in activating an ancient chemical pathway to limit stress and damage to the DNA of cells - which would otherwise result in ageing and disease”.

It was also found to activate other protective genes including an anti-cancer gene, which suppresses tumours and other age-related diseases.

There’s no need to risk a hangover, either. The report’s co-author Matthew Sajish said: "It is conceivable that moderate consumption of a couple of glasses of red wine would give a person enough resveratrol to evoke a protective effect.”

As well as being in the skin of red grapes, and therefore wine, resveratrol is also found in nuts, cocoa, and rhubarb.

The good news for moderate wine drinkers comes as a survey for culinary website CuisineAZ.com revealed that, despite financial worries, more than half of French people (56%) typically spend between €20 and €50 per guest for the Christmas meal, while 39% spend less than €20.

Photo: Will