Beer vs. Wine: What Are the Health Benefits of Both?
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When you visit a bar nearby, you probably don't worry about the differences between beer and wine and how each one can significantly impact your health. However, it's still essential to understand the differences between both drinks, especially in terms of the level of calories and alcohol content.
Generally, not all beers and wines have the same number of calories and alcohol content. For instance, about 5 beers is equal to a bottle of wine if you want to normalize the alcohol content inside your body. But, despite their differences, drinking either beer or wine comes with essential benefits.
Here's everything you need to know about them and how drinking such beverages can be beneficial for your health.
Beer: How It Can Benefit You?
Before tackling the benefits of drinking beer, it's still essential to know what beer actually is. Typically, beer refers to the most commonly consumed alcoholic drink, which is brewed from cereal grains such as maize, malted barley and rice. Its nutritional content primarily includes alcohol, with 7kcal energy per gram. Not only that, but beer is also rich in vitamin B2, B6 and B9, which is good for one's health.
Considering the beer's nutritional content, below are the common benefits of drinking this alcoholic beverage.
Help Build Stronger Bones
Drinking beer is perfectly good for your bones, thanks to its high silicon content, which is essential for bone growth and development. When you consume beer, you're able to minimize the risk of developing the bone-thinning disease known as osteoporosis.
Keep Your Heart Strong
Moderate intake of beer can help protect your heart from any cardiovascular disease. It contains lots of antioxidants that are beneficial for your heart health. In fact, people who drink beer are less likely to suffer a stroke, heart attack and other heart diseases.
That's why if you don't want to have a heart problem someday, having a beer keg in your own kitchen can be a good idea. Instead of going to the bar regularly, you can consume a glass of beer in moderation to protect your heart from possible illnesses.
Help Prevent and Fight Cancer
Another significant benefit of consuming beer is its ability to prevent and fight cancer. That's because of the Xanthohumol, an antioxidant contained in this alcoholic beverage. This antioxidant can help stop cancer-causing enzymes from damaging your health in the long run.
Keep Your Kidneys Working Properly
Moderate consumption of beer can also help prevent the risk of having kidney stones since it is about 93% water. This high water content is beneficial when it comes to eliminating harmful toxins from your body, resulting in keeping your kidneys working well.
Lower Cholesterol Levels
If you want to reduce the cholesterol level inside your body, then moderate drinking of beer may be a good option. This benefit is attributed to the barley used in the brewing process, which has beta-glucans, a soluble fiber that is excellent for reducing cholesterol levels.
Wine: How It Can Benefit You?
Now that you're aware of what beer can do to your body, it's time to get familiar with what wine is. In its simplest terms, wine refers to an alcoholic drink that is derived from fermented grapes. And just like beer, it also has a high nutritional content that includes chemical compounds such as natural phenols and polyphenols. These compounds, for instance, contain antioxidant properties and other nutrients that can promote good health.
Given wine's nutritional content, moderate intake of it comes with great benefits. These may include:
Lower Risk of Diabetes
Moderate drinking of wine can help ward off diabetes. It contains compounds that can minimize the risk of getting type 2 diabetes. However, it's important to note that alcohol consumption may cause low blood sugar, which is why you should talk to your doctor before drinking even a single glass of wine.
Boost Immune System
If you want to protect your immune system, consuming a glass of wine on a daily basis can be an excellent option. It has great nutritional content that's capable of fighting infections and keeping your immune system in good condition.
Lower Risk of Cardiovascular Disease
Wine, particularly red wine, is a powerful source of antioxidants. When consumed in moderation, it can lower blood pressure and, more importantly, keep your heart healthy against any risk of heart diseases. Also, the antioxidants found in wine can help reduce the bad cholesterol level inside your body.
Improve Bone Density
As you age and grow older, your bones start to weaken and become more brittle. While you can drink milk to improve your bone health, it's also good to consume wine moderately. That's because of its silicon content, which can help increase bone density and minimize the possibility of suffering from osteoporosis.
Due to all of these benefits, it's always a good idea to learn how to make wine at home.
Final Thoughts
Any alcoholic drink—whether it's wine or beer—has an impact on your body. Despite their slight differences in how they're made or how they make you feel, both of them have similarities in terms of their health benefits.
Therefore, if you can't decide which one to drink, keep all the information above in mind to help you choose the perfect alcoholic beverage that suits your needs. And whatever your choice is, make sure you consume it in moderation to avoid its harmful effects on your health
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