Fighting High Cholesterol with Grape Juice
Previous studies have shown that moderate wine consumption can favorably influence cholesterol levels in the bloodstream, specifically by increasing high-density lipoproteins (the “good” cholesterol).
These studies suggest that such benefits confer specifically to consumption of red wine, rather than white wine, beer or other types of alcohol.
If you’d like to get the cholesterol-lowering benefits of red wine without the alcoholic content, consider a possible alternative: purple grape juice. Flavanoids, the powerful antioxidants present in red wine, are also present in purple grape juice, an observation that spurred a recent study published in the journal Circulation. In the study, 15 adults with coronary artery disease consumed approximately 21 ounces of purple grape juice twice daily for 14 consecutive days. Results showed improved arterial dilation (the ability of the arteries to expand, allowing for enhanced blood flow) and improvements in other indicators of the disease.
What are you waiting for? Get to the store and get yourself some purple grape juice today! As these results suggest, you’ll be doing yourself and your loved ones a favor.
Reference:
Stein JH, Keevil JG, Wiebe DA, et al. Purple grape juice improves endothelial function and reduces the susceptibility of LDL cholesterol to oxidation in patients with coronary artery disease. Circulation 1999: Vol. 100, pp1050-55.
Additional information on the benefits of proper nutrition can be found at http://www.chiroweb.com/tyh/nutrients.html.
