Does moderate wine drinking and eating a Mediterranean diet slow down ageing?
The current study found that moderate wine consumption within a traditional Mediterranean Diet is associated with slower blood-based biological ageing (BA) in men of a well-characterised study group in Southern Italy.
Ageing is a natural process characterised by a progressive decline in physiological functions leading to multiple alterations across the body, however, individuals age at different rates. Biological age (BA) is a measure that can indicate how healthy an individual is, possibly better than the chronological age. The current study focused on how lifestyle factors such as smoking and obesity are linked to faster BA, while adherence to healthy dietary patterns, including the Mediterranean Diet (Med Diet) and consumption of polyphenol-rich foods have been associated with slower BA. Among lifestyle factors that may modulate BA, moderate wine consumption, particularly in the context of the traditional Med Diet represents a potentially beneficial behaviour due to its reported cardiovascular benefits. While excessive alcohol consumption is harmful, drinking wine in moderation during meals can be part of a healthy lifestyle. The researchers aimed to explore the link between wine consumption and BA using data from a well-established study population in Southern Italy.
To assess how wine consumption affects BA, the researchers examined data of nearly 22,500 participants from the Moli-Sani Study:
- For the Diet Assessment, participants filled out a food questionnaire asking about their eating habits and how much wine they consumed. Depending on their answers, they were grouped into different categories: abstainers (no alcohol), former drinkers, moderate drinkers (men: up to 250 ml of wine/d, women: up to 125 ml of wine/d), Mediterranean moderate drinkers (men: 125 to 500 ml of wine/d, women: 62.5 to 250 mL of wine/d., and heavy drinkers (men: more than 500 mL of wine/d, women: More than 250 mL of wine/d) .
- Biological Age Calculation: To estimate BA, the researchers used a special computer program, which looked at 36 different biomarkers in the participants’ serum, i.e. cholesterol and glucose levels, to calculate how old their body compared to their actual age seems to be.
All this information was analysed to assess if there was any association between the amount of wine participants consumed and their BA. Age, sex, and other lifestyle factors were adjusted.
The study results showed that drinking wine moderately, especially as part of a Mediterranean diet, might help slow down BA in men. Men who consumed about 200 mL of wine daily were found to be biologically younger than those who did not drink at all. This J-shaped relationship in men is consistent with prior research reporting a similar pattern between cardiovascular mortality and intake of alcoholic beverages. For women, no significant differences in biological ageing based on their patterns of wine consumption was observed, even though the observed dose-response relationship indicated potential benefits for both men and women. The researchers concluded that moderate wine intake, but not overall alcohol intake may contribute to slower BA in men, suggesting that the observed effects are more likely attributable to wine-specific components such as polyphenols. Overall, the study emphasizes the relevance of both beverage type and dietary pattern in BA. More studies need to confirm these associations and clarify underlying mechanisms.
