As a wine devotee, you might sometimes wonder about the possible health benefits associated with your cherished libation. No need to worry. Your favorite red is bursting with healthy reasons to enjoy each glass with verve, from brim to stem.

Pinpointing the earliest uses of wine as a health and nutritive aid goes back further than the year 2000 when several reports cascaded through the media, thrilling wine makers and wine connoisseurs alike. Those welcome announcements only confirmed ancient Chinese, Mesopotamian, Egyptian cultures — as in “back to at least 7500 B.C.” ancient — and other civilizations discovered about wine’s nutritional properties long before we set modern science to the task of further justifying the existence of this elixir most proponents would love without any justification.

But thanks to venerable medical figures such as Hippocrates, who often proposed wine as a pharmaceutical disinfectant, diuretic and nutritional supplement, for starters, we have it on good and ancient authority that wine has far more perks to offer than divine accompaniment to that amazing cheese plate, your favorite chocolate indulgence or that sublime seafood dish.

If you occasionally mull over your decision to pour a glass of your favorite Bordeaux or Pinot with dinner, or as accompaniment as you prepare dinner after a long and stressful at work, consider the health benefits that it has to offer to pacify any passing concerns. As with most things in life, especially the best things, moderation is the key to reaping wine’s health benefits versus sparking any possible negative effects; but as a wine aficionado, you already know that wine is always best, and most gratifying on all levels, in moderation. You are already set to enjoy the health benefits of wine.

• Wine’s Got Heart…Healthy Properties That Keep Things Flowing. WebMD cites the September 2000 issue of theAnnals of Internal Medicine for its findings from the Swedish researchers at the Karolinska Institute who reported that light wine drinkers, versus teetotalers, reduced their risk of premature death from heart disease by one-third “while wine drinkers as a group had significantly lower mortality from cardiovascular disease and cancer.” Part of the reason, scientists have found, is that wine tends to dilate arteries to allow greater blood flow, thus preventing blood clots that might prevent proper blood flow to the heart. The Mayo Clinic reports that the antioxidants found in wine, particularly red wine, serve to help protect the heart by increasing the body’s production of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, aka the “good cholesterol” that helps prevent artery damage. Another key ingredient in wine that makes it a powerhouse in heart protection is resveratrol, which reduces low-density lipoprotein (LDL), often referred to as “bad cholesterol,” and prevents blood clots.
• Aging and Dementia Have Trouble Holding Up Against Wine Consumption. Resveratrol in wine comes up again in Medical News Today’s discussion of wine’s health benefits, as far as working as an important factor in dementia prevention and anti-aging.
• Wine’s Health Benefits Abound All Over the Body. Just a few other amazing health and nutritive benefits associated with moderate wine consumption, according to Medical News Today, include reducing the risk of depression, reducing the risk of colon and breast cancers, protection from sunburns, preventing blinding diseases, improving lung function and preventing lung cancer, preventing type-2 diabetes.
• And Not to Leave Out the Amazing White Wines. While most of the modern health benefits listed above refer to red wines, white wines have certainly had their place in medicinal history, serving more in medical situations, such as for wound dressings.

With so many health benefits associated with wine, there is no reason to worry over your passion for it, in its many varieties. Enjoyed in moderation and regularity, you can enjoy this mature indulgence while knowing you are adding value to your health as well.