Beneficial effects of moderate consumption of Teran red wine on blood lipid profile: a preliminary study on healthy volunteers

Abstract

Moderate wine consumption may impact several human health aspects, among others as a result of phenolic compounds present in wine and their bioactive properties. The aim of this study was to determine whether six weeks of daily, moderate Teran red wine consumption affects the levels of total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol – HDL, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol – LDL, and triglycerides. Sixty-eight healthy adults (46 women and 22 men) aged 25-64 years voluntarily agreed to participate in the study. The study was carried out in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki developed by the World Medical Association and was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Clinical Hospital Center Rijeka (Croatia). Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study. Participants were divided into two groups, consumers (49 participants) and non-consumers (19 participants). Non-consumers were asked to avoid any alcohol intake during the six study weeks, while consumers were asked to consume one glass of red wine (200 mL) per day and not to drink any extra alcohol. Blood samples for laboratory tests were drawn just before the start and at the end of the study period. Total cholesterol, HDL, LDL, and triglycerides were analyzed on a biochemistry analyzer at Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka, using standard laboratory methods. Total phenols in wine expressed as gallic acid equivalents in mg/L of wine (mg GAE/L) were determined by the Folin-Ciocalteu colorimetric method using a UV/Vis spectrophotometer. One-way analysis of variance and Fischer’s least significant difference test at the level of significance p ≤ 0.05 were used to compare the groups of participants. The differences between the values obtained in the second (the end of the study period) and the first measurement (before the start of the study period) of their blood parameters were used in statistical analysis. The consumed red wine was produced at the Institute of Agriculture and Tourism (Poreč, Croatia) from an old autochthonous grapevine variety Teran (Vitis vinifera L.). The total phenolic content in the produced wines ranged from 2369 mg to 2917 mg GAE/L. No significant differences were observed between the consumers and non-consumers regarding blood lipid profiles. However, considering that alcohol consumption generally can negatively affect cholesterol levels, our findings suggest that the beneficial effects of phenolics and/or other wine constituents possibly overcame the negative alcohol effects on health. Although it does not provide any evidence of the significant positive or negative effect of moderate Teran red wine consumption on blood lipid profile, this study could suggest that daily moderate wine consumption can be considered as a component of the healthy lifestyle regarding the investigated parameters. This study was funded by Croatian Science Foundation under the projects VINUM SANUM (IP-2018-01-5049) and (DOK-2018-09).