Sun, 16 Dec 2007 13:27:3
Annabella Bulacan - AHN News Writer
New York City, NY (AHN) - Drinking wine could cut the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. New research involving 1,445 people, aged 65 to 84 years old, suffering from mild cognitive impairment, indicated that taking a glass of wine a day could significantly delay progression of dementia or the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.
According to lead researcher Vincenzo Solfizzi of the University of Bari in Italy, this study backs up other observations that "drinking moderate amounts of alcohol may protect the brains from stroke and vascular dementia."
"While many studies have assessed alcohol consumption and cognitive function in the elderly, this is the first study to look at how alcohol consumption affects rate of progression of mild cognitive impairment to dementia," the Times of India quoted Solfizzi as saying.
He stressed, "The mechanism responsible for why low alcohol consumption appears to protect against the progression to dementia isn't known. However, it is possible that the arrangement of blood vessels in the brain may play a role in why alcohol consumption appears to protect against dementia."
Those who had the habit of drinking a glass of wine everyday developed dementia 85 percent slower than people who never drank alcohol, the study further showed.
A related study meanwhile stated that while a glass of either red or white one a day may be good for the health, too much drinking of any variety of alcoholic beverages may increase the risk of cardiovascular or chronic diseases.
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