wine and health

In a drastic lurch back to Victorian era temperance, the American Heart Association came out this month with lifestyle recommendations intended to promote “ideal cardiovascular health.” Their list of “Life’s Simple Seven” includes: • Never smoked or quit more than one year ago; • Body mass index less than 25 kg/m2 (I.e., not overweight) • Physical activity of at least 150 minutes (moderate intensity) or 75 minutes (vigorous intensity) each week; • Four to five of the key components of a healthy diet consistent with current American Heart Association guideline recommendations; • Total cholesterol of less than 200; • Blood pressure below 120/80; • Fasting blood glucose less than 100. Not much to quibble with there it would seem, but as always the devil is in the details. Let’s look more closely at the “healthy diet” components: • Vegetables and fruits are high in vitamins, minerals and fiber — and they’re low in calories. Eating a variety of fruits and vegetables may help you ...