309: The Surprising Health Benefits of Wine with Tony Edwards, Author of The Very Good News About Wine

Unreserved Wine Talk

Have the health risks of moderate wine consumption been grossly overstated? How does moderate wine consumption reduce heart disease? What is the ideal amount and pattern of wine consumption for maximum health benefits, and how does it differ between men and women?

In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with author Tony Edwards.

You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks

Giveaway

Three of you will win a copy of his terrific new book, The Very Good News About Wine. To qualify, all you have to do is email me at [e-mail] and let me know that you’ve posted a review of the podcast. I’ll choose three people randomly from those who contact me. Good luck!

Highlights

How did Tony’s experience as a BBC producer and a medical columnist shape his approach to researching and writing about wine?

Why does Tony believe the glycemic index is more accurate than the calorie theory for measuring food values?

What impact does alcohol have on your insulin response?

What does research show about the benefits of dry wine for diabetics?

What motivated Tony to revisit the topic of alcohol and health a decade after his first book, The Good News About Booze?

Which aspects of synthesizing decades of research on wine and health did Tony find most challenging?

Why was wine prescribed in UK hospitals and by physicians during the Prohibition era in North America?

What is the ideal amount and pattern of wine consumption for maximum health benefits?

How does the J-curve demonstrate the extent of the health benefits of wine for heart health and diabetes?

Does the alcohol in wine influence its health benefits?

What are the health implications of non-alcoholic wines compared to moderate consumption of regular wine?

Key Takeaways

Tony explains that the alcohol consumption guidelines are completely the inverse of what the evidence says. He wondered why the guidelines were being reduced to a level that actually no one benefits from moderate wine consumption. Study after study shows wine is really good news.

Tony observes that it’s actually the collection of polyphenols in wine that have the beneficial effect rather than simply resveratrol alone. It's the interaction of these polyphenols with each other that produces a benefit.

Tony notes that a study in 2018 came to the conclusion that for men, the maximum optimum intake of wine per day was 60 grams, which is about two-thirds of the bottle, and for women, half that.

About Tony Edwards

Former BBC science documentary producer/director/writer. Now specializing in medical research journalism, Tony Edwards is a former BBC TV producer/ director/ writer, with over 80 science documentaries to his credit, some winning awards from such bodies as the British Medical Association. After the BBC, he wrote on science, technology and medicine for The Sunday Times, Readers Digest, Daily Mail and a wide variety of medical magazines. He is married to the broadcaster and novelist Debbie Rix; they have two grown-up children, three hens and four cats, and live in rural Kent.

To learn more, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/309.