310: Women, Wine and Health: The Good News with Tony Edwards
What might surprise you about the impact of alcohol on heart disease? How can wine drinkers reduce the risk of certain cancers with one supplement? Does wine help protect against cognitive decline and dementia? Why do some organizations make extreme recommendations for eliminating alcohol? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with author Tony Edwards. You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks Giveaway Three of you will win a copy of his terrific new book, The Very Good News About Wine. To qualify, all you have to do is email me at natalie@nataliemaclean.com and let me know that you’ve posted a review of the podcast. I’ll choose three people randomly from those who contact me. Good luck! Highlights What positive health effects were found in Harvard’s long-term research on alcohol and heart disease? How can wine consumption decrease the risk of certain cancers? What did the Mayo Clinic study find about the relationship between women and red wine? How does the concept of absolute risk versus relative risk contribute to sensational headlines? What’s the connection between folate and cancer risk and how does alcohol consumption affect this dynamic? How might wine protect against cognitive decline and dementia? Why does wine play such an important part in the longevity puzzle for certain populations? What is the surprising relationship between wine consumption and inflammation? Why does Tony believe the World Health Organization's 2023 declaration that no level of alcohol consumption is safe is rooted in an anti-alcohol agenda rather than evidence? What’s happening with alcohol-labeling legislation in Ireland, and how might it spread to other countries? What were the problems with the controversial drinking guidelines proposed in Canada, and where did they come from? Key Takeaways Folate is depleted by alcohol. Harvard researchers discovered that if you give women folate in supplement form, women drinkers will reduce their risk of breast cancer massively to the extent of wiping out the risk. Wine helps protect against cognitive decline and dementia. According to a large Swedish study that showed that women who drank wine exclusively had a 75% reduced risk of Alzheimer's. Some organizations make extreme recommendations for eliminating alcohol consumption altogether, despite the research showing otherwise and Tony thinks the problem is that they find the idea of the J curve very difficult to explain. About Tony Edwards Former BBC science documentary producer/director/writer. Now specializing in medical research journalism, Tony Edwards is a former BBC TV producer/ director/ writer, with over 80 science documentaries to his credit, some winning awards from such bodies as the British Medical Association. After the BBC, he wrote on science, technology and medicine for The Sunday Times, Readers Digest, Daily Mail and a wide variety of medical magazines. He is married to the broadcaster and novelist Debbie Rix; they have two grown-up children, three hens and four cats, and live in rural Kent. To learn more, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/310.