A toast to good health

HERE’S another reason for all ye wine-lovers to sip that tempting glass of Burgundy tonight - it’s not just heart-friendly, but has been now proved beneficial for the precious lungs too.
According to a recently released research report in the science journal Thorax, published by the Imperial College in United Kingdom, some of the ingredients of red wine can be extremely beneficial for some severe and incurable lung diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The red colour of wine, which is essentially derived from a substance called Resveratrol, has a great effect on the fibre-formation process that can lead to fibrosis and other lung ailments including COPD, states the report.
“The chemical called Interleukin-8, the strongest chemoattractant that has potential to reduce the severity of many lung maladies has been the topic of research for scientists since years. Red wine makes it available in the easiest form possible and there is a chance that it can be seperated to form various kinds of medicines including inhalers that can give instant relief during a fibrosis attack,� writes researcher Louise Donnelley.
Though the British Lung Foundation has welcomed this breakthrough as ‘exciting’ along with western doctors and wine-lovers supporting it, Pune experts are still sceptical about the claimed effects of the red wine. “Alcohol has been proved to be partially beneficial for the cardio-vascular facility, but as far as lungs are concerned, there has been no further development after the indication of the initial trends,� opines Dr. Nitin Abhyankar, lung disease specialist from Jehangir Nursing Home. “As far as recommending this as medication is concerned, I don’t think it’s possible keeping in mind the alcohol factor and addictive nature of wine.�
For many other doctors, who agree with Dr. Abhyankar, these type of research projects are a matter of mere entertainment.
“I have a doubt that such kind of research could be inspired by some commercial wine-producers and corporates just for the sake of business, as it happens many times in advanced capitalistic countries,� says Dr. Sachin Tapaswi. Dr. Sudhir Arora toes the same line, “If you check the record of the last decade, there have been so many contradictory reports published even in prestigious journals that I would prefer to wait for another year to check the details of the real effects. Alcohol of any type creates a state of temporary elation and a false sense of fitness in the person consuming it, but there’s a thin line between use and abuse and no doctor in the world should take the risk of advising it. If the scientists have found a way out of separating the substance from alcohol, it could be real medicine for all age groups.�
sharvari.joshi@timesgroup.com