Wine is perhaps one of the most studied drinks in the entire world, and it has been that way for many years. This latest study is one of them, but what makes it very interesting is its claim: everything you've heard about the health benefits of wine, well, they may not be entirely true.
Australian and British researchers have teamed up to validate the many supposed benefits of wine, and what they found out may break many people's hearts.
They analyzed the medical data of over 50,000 men and women who were at least 50 years old. These people had participated in surveys about their wine drinking habits and their health conditions revisited after a decade.
From their research, they discovered that drinking wine may be beneficial to a very limited group of people only: women who are at least 65 years old. They were more than likely to outlive women below 65 and who never drank by 27%. But take note that these women were only moderate drinkers, which meant they consumed red wine only 5 times each week.
When it comes to men, drinking wine seemed to help those who are between 50 and 64 years old compared to men who never drank, but the level of protection from dying wasn't as extensive as that of women over 65.
But these were not their only findings. The researchers concurred that the previous study they used as basis might have committed selection bias, which would also mean that the results might not be entirely correct and that they might have been an exaggeration.
For example, it's possible that women who were 65 years old may already be healthier than women of the same age but who didn't drink. Another potential explanation is that those who didn't drink may be men and women who were advised against consuming red wine due to possible complications or contraindications.
