Drinking Red Wine Leads To A Healthier Gut, Study Finds

28 August 2019, 14:59

Drinking red wine could give you a healthier gut by increasing the number of different types of helpful bacteria that can live there, according to researchers.

Our guts contain trillions of bacteria and other micro-organisms and this community of "friendly" bugs helps to keep us healthy.

A more diverse gut microbiome is associated with a healthier digestive system. The scientists found the gut microbiome of red wine drinkers was more diverse compared to those who had drunk other alcoholic drinks.

The benefits are likely to come from polyphenols - compounds that white wine, beer and cider have far less of, the King's College London team says.

Polyphenols are also found in many fruits and vegetables.

A glass a fortnight was enough to make a difference, but researchers say the findings are not an excuse to binge.

Researcher Dr Caroline Le Roy said: "This is an observational study so we cannot prove that the effect we see is caused by red wine.

"If you must choose one alcoholic drink today, red wine is the one to pick as it seems to potentially exert a beneficial effect on you and your gut microbes, which in turn may also help weight and risk of heart disease."

The study stressed that red wine should be drunk in moderation.

Moderate red wine drinkers have better gut health, lower levels of obesity and lower degrees of “bad” cholesterol than non-drinkers, the findings showed.