VIENNA (Reuters) - If you must smoke, at least make sure you have a glass of red wine in the other hand.

Researchers said Sunday there were enough beneficial chemicals in two glasses of red wine to suspend the harmful effect that smoking one cigarette has on the functioning of arteries.

That does not prove regular red wine drinking can counteract the harm of chronic smoking, John Lekakis and Christos Papamichael of University Hospital in Athens told the annual meeting of the European Society of Cardiology.

But the finding does suggest that red wine -- long seen as good for the heart when drunk in moderation -- may provide clues in the hunt for new drug candidates capable of reversing smoking's harmful effects.

The scientists used a Greek red wine, rich in chemicals known as polyphenols, for their experiment on 16 healthy volunteers. They established that alcohol was not the cause of the beneficial effect by testing an alcohol-free version, which worked just as well.

Red Wine vs. Welch's. (1 out of a series of articles; other articles soon to come, Inshallah)

As many people are aware, red wine had made the news again. According to the study, "there were enough beneficial chemicals in two glasses of red wine to suspend the harmful effect that smoking one cigarette has on the functioning of arteries" (Red Wine). Of course, due to this statement, many people may assume it is the alcohol that provides such benefits; furthermore, such a statement may have caused a confusion in Muslim society, as Muslims are aware that alcohol is impermissible. Yet, the truth is that praises of alcoholic red wine in recent studies have been only showing half-truths; alcohol actually detracts from the benefits of red wine.

Aside from causing a person to loose his/her train of rational thought, killing braincells, and negatively affecting the fetus of a pregnant woman, alcohol, in fact, detracts from red wine's benefits. A recent study that found that red wine gave an advantage to smokers stated also found "that alcohol was not the cause of the beneficial effect by testing an alcohol-free version, which worked just as well" (Red Wine). So, what should one opt for? In a study conducted by the University of Wisconsin Medical School, "purple grape juice contains the same powerful disease-fighting antioxidants, called flavonoids, that are believed to give wine many of its heart-friendly benefits." The study also stated that grape juice is as beneficial as it is practical; "Wine only prevents blood from clotting [when it's consumed] at levels high enough to declare someone legally drunk," says University of Wisconsin researcher John Folts, Ph.D. (The Buzz About Grape Juice). What's more, alcoholic drinks do not improve "the function of cells in blood vessel linings they way grape juice does" (Jaret). "And alcohol generates free radicals -- unstable oxygen molecules that can actually cause damage to blood vessel tissues -- dampening any of the benefits that red wine's antioxidants may offer" (Jaret). Another study conducted by the University of California took removed all the alcohol from a bottle of wine and asked a group of nine volunteers to alternate between drinking the nonalcoholic wine one day and an alcoholic version the next (Jaret). The study found that "a key antioxidant called catechin remained in the blood for more than 4 hours after the volunteers drank the nonalcoholic wine, compared to only 3.2 hours for the full-strength cabernet. Apparently, alcohol hastens the breakdown of the antioxidant in the blood, speeding its elimination from the body" (Jaret). Although red wine has been praised in the media, the benefits of red wine do not come from the alcohol itself.

In essence, alcohol is not the source of benefit in red wine; as a matter of fact, it hinders red wine from being advantageous to the heart. Although there has been some newfound benefits of alcohol, one has to look at red wine as a whole and study its pros, cons and alternatives before making a conclusion.

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These are comments posted from viewers of the Yahoo! Website in response to the article, "Red Wine Good for Smokers, Scientists Find."

"...though once again if you read the fine print (which most don't), the picture changes. It's only the arterial effects of smoking that are offset by the wine chemicals... not the lung and other cancers, emphysema, gum disease, digestive problems, skin damage, smell, expense, etc... Let's do some research showing that a glass of wine and a cigarette somehow make it safer to carry and shoot guns... Then the alcohol and tobacco industries can pool their resources with the NRA to plant even more exciting "news" stories."
-("It's a Conspiracy," Yahoo! News Message Boards)

"'Researchers said Sunday there were enough beneficial chemicals in two glasses of red wine to suspend the harmful effect that smoking one cigarette has on the functioning of arteries.'That means 40 glasses a pack so you heavy smokers need to drink about 18 bottles to cover for your 2 pack a day habit. Nice."
-("As Others Have Already Pointed Out" Yahoo! Message Boards)

Jaret, Peter. The Buzz About Grape Juice. http://my.webmd.com/content/article/13/1671_50624.htm?lastselectedguid={5FE84E90-BC77-4 056-A91C-9531713CA348}. 2000. WebMDHealth. 25 Aug. 2003