Good Things - 11/23/09

Red Wine.

I hope I don't lose a lot of you with this one, as I know that some of my readers don't drink for a variety of reasons, but, as I always say, I'm saying what has helped me. I'm not stating that my way is the only way or even the best way.

When I say red wine I'm talking about one, four ounce glass with my evening meal. Not a lot. Nothing to excess. I'm not overindulging or doing anything stupid.

There is scientific evidence that red wine is good for your heart, lowers cholesterol, and, more recently, may even help in the fight against diabetes.

Here is what I know. For diabetics the high end of cholesterol is 180. Mine went from 187 to about 132 in one year after adding red wine to my daily diet. I had gotten it down from over 200 to the 187 mark with some other food changes, but the red wine was the only change in the second year.

My A1C test, a test of the last 90 days readings of blood sugar, was 4. That is comparable to a non-diabetic. The normal range is anything below 7.

So, it is only a suggestion. Just noting some things I've done to help myself take care of this one body I have. You can take it or leave it, as is the case with everything I put here. If you disagree that is fine, I can respect that.

But, I am currently in the heart of wine country and a lot of experts say the Mediterrean diet overall is a good one. I'm willing to keep sampling and see. :)

Ciao!