Moderate red wine consumption slashes risk of Alzheimer’s

Moderate red wine consumption in a form of Cabernet Sauvignon may help slash the relative risk of Alzheimer’s disease, a new study carried on mice reveals, however, scientists caution that they have not yet tested if the findings apply to people.

Dr. Giulio Maria Pasinetti and Dr. Jun Wang at New York's Mount Sinai School of Medicine studied female mice with genes that stimulate the production of amyloid-beta protein, a 42-amino-acid proteolytic product of the amyloid precursor protein that accumulates in the brains of persons with Alzheimer's disease.

In their study, the researchers divided the female mice into three groups. One group of mice was served with drinking water spiked with red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon from California-grown grapes), while the second group had its drinking water mixed with ethanol that didn't come from red wine. And, the mice in the third group were teetotalers, consuming water with no alcohol.

The mice were free to drink their respective beverages as much as they wanted for seven months. None went on major benders. The mice's average wine consumption equaled moderate consumption in humans, the researchers observed.

And, what the researchers further discovered was that one glass of red wine a day was all the mice needed to get significant brain-protecting benefits. After seven months of consuming their respective drinks, the mice individually were placed in a maze and challenged to find their way out. And the astonishing results were that those in the red wine group performed best and had the lowest levels of amyloid-beta proteins.

"Moderation is the key word, otherwise you lose all the benefit," says Dr. Pasinetti. The researchers defined moderate consumption as one five ounce glass of wine a day for women and two for men.

“Our study is the first to report that moderate consumption of red wine in a form of Cabernet Sauvignon (a variety of red grape mainly used for wine production) delivered in the drinking water for 7 months significantly reduces AD-type ß-amyloid neuropathology, and memory deterioration in 11-month-old transgenic mice that model AD," reported Dr. Pasinetti and Dr. Wang.

Researchers’ team, however, observed that besides benefits alcohol had risks as well, and is not recommending that anyone start sipping wine to prevent Alzheimer's.

So far, the study only included mice, and it's too soon to know if the findings apply to people, they said.

The study titles as "Moderate Consumption of Cabernet Sauvignon Attenuates ß-amyloid Neuropathology in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease" will be unleashed in the November 2006 issue of The FASEB Journal.