Have you ever thought that there are just too many experts? Too many studies advising that we should do this or eat that? This is good for you and this is bad for you etc., etc…..  Sometimes I feel like shouting “Stop”, and then just carry on by using my own judgement and common sense. A bit of everything but ‘in moderation’ would seem like the best idea to me.

I have to confess that one of the latest studies made me smile, and I had absolutely no idea when I saw it that it had been commissioned here in Spain. Apparently, according to Spanish ‘experts’, eating to much fast food will make you depressed. Burgers, hot dogs, pizza, doughnuts and croissants can all help to make you feel ‘down’. Forgive me for saying but this seems hardly surprising, and do you really have to be an expert to come up with that conclusion? They continue by adding that people who eat too much fast food are likely to have other bad habits as well. Of course it could simply be that by eating unhealthy food and putting on a bit of excess weight then this could also be a contributory factor.

Anyway, in order to make this post a little more relevant to our line of work, there is the tale of another group of scientists in Chicago who have discovered that drinking to excess can either make you happy, or perhaps even make you sad. Believe me, this isn’t a joke. Although sometimes described as a depressant, alcohol can actually produce a mixture of either stimulant or sedative effects, with some people treating it as a social lubricant whilst others see it as a potential ‘downer’. Again, I don’t claim to be an expert, but I think I could have quite easily worked that out for myself. They go on to say that the way it affects you is all down to your individual genetic make-up, and their ‘discovery’ could explain why some drinkers become angry and upset if they get intoxicated while others become merry and silly.

I guess that the conclusion we should draw from these two most ‘enlightening’ studies is – don’t use a bottle and a half of cab-merlot to wash down your triple cheese burger and double fries – it might be bad for your health (mental or otherwise).

Have you ever thought that there are just too many experts? Too many studies advising that we should do this or eat that? This is good for you and this is bad for you etc., etc…..  Sometimes I feel like shouting “Stop”, and then just carry on by using my own judgement and common sense. A bit of everything but ‘in moderation’ would seem like the best idea to me.

I have to confess that one of the latest studies made me smile, and I had absolutely no idea when I saw it that it had been commissioned here in Spain. Apparently, according to Spanish ‘experts’, eating to much fast food will make you depressed. Burgers, hot dogs, pizza, doughnuts and croissants can all help to make you feel ‘down’. Forgive me for saying but this seems hardly surprising, and do you really have to be an expert to come up with that conclusion? They continue by adding that people who eat too much fast food are likely to have other bad habits as well. Of course it could simply be that by eating unhealthy food and putting on a bit of excess weight then this could also be a contributory factor.

Anyway, in order to make this post a little more relevant to our line of work, there is the tale of another group of scientists in Chicago who have discovered that drinking to excess can either make you happy, or perhaps even make you sad. Believe me, this isn’t a joke. Although sometimes described as a depressant, alcohol can actually produce a mixture of either stimulant or sedative effects, with some people treating it as a social lubricant whilst others see it as a potential ‘downer’. Again, I don’t claim to be an expert, but I think I could have quite easily worked that out for myself. They go on to say that the way it affects you is all down to your individual genetic make-up, and their ‘discovery’ could explain why some drinkers become angry and upset if they get intoxicated while others become merry and silly.

I guess that the conclusion we should draw from these two most ‘enlightening’ studies is – don’t use a bottle and a half of cab-merlot to wash down your triple cheese burger and double fries – it might be bad for your health (mental or otherwise).

At the beginning of this month a UK government health minister revealed that in future wine labels might be required to include yet more information, this time relating to calorie content. Wine labels are already crammed with consumer advice, and this is made even more complicated by the fact that each country has its own regulations.

This latest idea suggests that wine consumers are becoming overweight and obese owing to excessive alcohol consumption, although I would have thought that this problem is perhaps more related to beer than it is to wine. Having said that it is perhaps true to say that alcohol can be underestimated when it come to calories, one pint of lager beer for example can contain 250 calories, whilst one single glass of wine might be anything from 140 up to 230 calories (depending on the wine style).

Perhaps I am biased but I still believe that wine is sometimes unfairly blamed for specific health problems. For example, binge drinking is rarely associated with wine, liver disease is more often caused by spirits, and I am still of the opinion that weight problems are probably more related to beer drinking. Of course, wine is not completely blameless, but it does often get dragged into the argument. 

The calorie count in wine comes from the sugar and alcohol, but there is no hard and fast rule as to which type of wine contains the most carbohydrates – it is perfectly possible to find a slightly sweet, low alcohol wine that has less calories than a dry, high alcohol wine. Perhaps surprisingly, it’s not all about sugar, indeed there are more calories in the alcohol itself which is why it is so difficult to provide a standard calculation.

The good news is that besides the carbs and calories, there are also nutrients in wine that come from the skin of the grape itself. Generally speaking red wine contains more minerals and antioxidants than white wine, but any colour of wine, in moderation, is not bad for you!

At the beginning of this month a UK government health minister revealed that in future wine labels might be required to include yet more information, this time relating to calorie content. Wine labels are already crammed with consumer advice, and this is made even more complicated by the fact that each country has its own regulations.

This latest idea suggests that wine consumers are becoming overweight and obese owing to excessive alcohol consumption, although I would have thought that this problem is perhaps more related to beer than it is to wine. Having said that it is perhaps true to say that alcohol can be underestimated when it come to calories, one pint of lager beer for example can contain 250 calories, whilst one single glass of wine might be anything from 140 up to 230 calories (depending on the wine style).

Perhaps I am biased but I still believe that wine is sometimes unfairly blamed for specific health problems. For example, binge drinking is rarely associated with wine, liver disease is more often caused by spirits, and I am still of the opinion that weight problems are probably more related to beer drinking. Of course, wine is not completely blameless, but it does often get dragged into the argument. 

The calorie count in wine comes from the sugar and alcohol, but there is no hard and fast rule as to which type of wine contains the most carbohydrates – it is perfectly possible to find a slightly sweet, low alcohol wine that has less calories than a dry, high alcohol wine. Perhaps surprisingly, it’s not all about sugar, indeed there are more calories in the alcohol itself which is why it is so difficult to provide a standard calculation.

The good news is that besides the carbs and calories, there are also nutrients in wine that come from the skin of the grape itself. Generally speaking red wine contains more minerals and antioxidants than white wine, but any colour of wine, in moderation, is not bad for you!

It was only a day or so ago that I was writing about the abuse of alcohol, and how (as responsible producers) we should never condone heavy drinking. I’m sure that I have written on many previous occasions about the huge number of health warnings appearing on wine labels around the world, and this trend continues with every day that passes. One by one countries are adding compulsory warnings to their labels, the most stringent of which is probably the US. The vast majority of warnings are quite obvious and just plain common sense, such as, do not drive or operate machinery, do not drink whilst pregnant, do not allow children to drink etc. The collective message? Use alcohol responsibly and never abuse its use…..

The only problem is that new research (God help us) has now apparently determined that even moderate drinking can be related to the onset of dementia in later life. The risk, ranging from mild cognitive impairment to full blown dementia, was higher among those who reported drinking more alcohol. It’s hardly surprising that regular binge drinking (for example, our regular weekly Botellon here in Spain), increases the risk dramatically. Among the thousands of men and women they studied, those who reported heavy bouts of drinking – at least one episode per month – were more likely to experience dementia-like problems. The more regularly they binged, the more the risk increased.

Apparently alcohol can cause your blood pressure and blood cholesterol to rise which, in turn, can damage the blood vessels supplying the brain, causing problems such as vascular dementia.

Of course, this is only one side of the story, as on the other hand there is still research claiming that taking alcohol (in moderation) can help your digestion, and possibly keep your heart in good shape. So it’s not all doom and gloom for wine drinkers!

It was only a day or so ago that I was writing about the abuse of alcohol, and how (as responsible producers) we should never condone heavy drinking. I’m sure that I have written on many previous occasions about the huge number of health warnings appearing on wine labels around the world, and this trend continues with every day that passes. One by one countries are adding compulsory warnings to their labels, the most stringent of which is probably the US. The vast majority of warnings are quite obvious and just plain common sense, such as, do not drive or operate machinery, do not drink whilst pregnant, do not allow children to drink etc. The collective message? Use alcohol responsibly and never abuse its use…..

The only problem is that new research (God help us) has now apparently determined that even moderate drinking can be related to the onset of dementia in later life. The risk, ranging from mild cognitive impairment to full blown dementia, was higher among those who reported drinking more alcohol. It’s hardly surprising that regular binge drinking (for example, our regular weekly Botellon here in Spain), increases the risk dramatically. Among the thousands of men and women they studied, those who reported heavy bouts of drinking – at least one episode per month – were more likely to experience dementia-like problems. The more regularly they binged, the more the risk increased.

Apparently alcohol can cause your blood pressure and blood cholesterol to rise which, in turn, can damage the blood vessels supplying the brain, causing problems such as vascular dementia.

Of course, this is only one side of the story, as on the other hand there is still research claiming that taking alcohol (in moderation) can help your digestion, and possibly keep your heart in good shape. So it’s not all doom and gloom for wine drinkers!

Don’t get me wrong, we should never appear to be flippant about the consumption of alcohol (or perhaps I should say over-consumption), but it is becoming increasingly difficult  to comprehend exactly how we should calculate a “moderate” amount. We are constantly told “consume in moderation”, but the truth is that the so called ‘experts’ appear to disagree on exactly how we should interpret this phrase.

Yet another study (oh dear!), this time by a team of researchers at Oxford University, says that we should drink no more than half a unit of alcohol per day. This would equate to three small glasses of wine per week, and if we assume that a small glass is 125ml, then this would be exactly half a bottle of wine per week (375ml).

The confusion is caused as this new advice appears to contradict the guideline given by the UK Government itself. Officially the government says that men can safely drink 3-4 units of alcohol per day (approx 250ml), and women 2-3 units (approx 175ml) – these figures are calculated using our own albariño of 12% alcohol by volume, as an example. Certainly we need some sort of sensible, realistic guideline, but the question then becomes, who is actually giving us the correct information?

This new research then goes on to claim that up to 4,500 lives a year could be saved in the UK alone. Please forgive me for being a little cynical here, but isn’t that rather like saying that researchers tell us that if we don’t drive our cars, then several thousand lives a year could also be saved? This has to be a case of using our own common sense, doesn’t it?

Don’t get me wrong, we should never appear to be flippant about the consumption of alcohol (or perhaps I should say over-consumption), but it is becoming increasingly difficult  to comprehend exactly how we should calculate a “moderate” amount. We are constantly told “consume in moderation”, but the truth is that the so called ‘experts’ appear to disagree on exactly how we should interpret this phrase.

Yet another study (oh dear!), this time by a team of researchers at Oxford University, says that we should drink no more than half a unit of alcohol per day. This would equate to three small glasses of wine per week, and if we assume that a small glass is 125ml, then this would be exactly half a bottle of wine per week (375ml).

The confusion is caused as this new advice appears to contradict the guideline given by the UK Government itself. Officially the government says that men can safely drink 3-4 units of alcohol per day (approx 250ml), and women 2-3 units (approx 175ml) – these figures are calculated using our own albariño of 12% alcohol by volume, as an example. Certainly we need some sort of sensible, realistic guideline, but the question then becomes, who is actually giving us the correct information?

This new research then goes on to claim that up to 4,500 lives a year could be saved in the UK alone. Please forgive me for being a little cynical here, but isn’t that rather like saying that researchers tell us that if we don’t drive our cars, then several thousand lives a year could also be saved? This has to be a case of using our own common sense, doesn’t it?