The French Paradox Revisited

By Megan Ness
Contributing Writer
Some have pondered, “How many points is this glass of wine?” and they didn’t have Robert Parker in mind. Many popular diet plans require forgoing alcohol, at least in initial phases, largely because it’s equated with “empty” calories and has the reputation for weakening one’s will to resist the siren song of happy hour nachos. This conventional wisdom has been challenged by a recent study that makes a provocative case that drinking wine in moderation may help prevent weight gain in women.

The French Paradox first gained national notoriety courtesy of a “60 Minutes” episode aired in 1991. In a nutshell, the “paradox” looks at why the French, whose diets are famous for croissants, cheese, and foie gras (literally “fat liver”), enjoy lower rates of obesity and heart disease. Their wine culture was identified as a primary factor. The idea was so compelling to Americans that it inspired a 44% increase in wine sales and earned Morley Safer an award from the French luxury brands behemoth, LVMH Group. The 2005 book “French Women Don’t Get Fat” revisited the habits behind the phenomenon and spent months on the New York Times bestseller list. Though Francophobia (remember freedom fries?) is no longer de rigueur, many may still secretly rejoice that French women (and men) do get fat, though at lower rates than in America.

A large study published early March in Archives of Internal Medicine revives the wine and healthier weight chatter and has reinstated “French Paradox” as a common search term. Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital followed 19,220 U.S. women with normal BMIs (an indicator of weight) aged 39 and up for an average of 13 years. Alcohol intake, weight, and other factors were self-reported via questionnaires. At baseline about 60 percent of the women were light to moderate drinkers, while about 40 percent reported drinking no alcohol.

The researchers concluded “an inverse association between alcohol intake and risk of becoming overweight or obese was noted for all four types of alcoholic beverages (red wine, white wine, beer and liquor), with the strongest association found for red wine.” All women on average gained some weight and 41 percent became overweight or obese by study’s end but women who abstained from alcohol gained about nine pounds versus the three-pound average gain among moderate drinkers. Women who drank 15 to less than 30 grams of alcohol per day (five ounces of wine is about 15 grams of alcohol) had the lowest risk of becoming overweight.

This study is compelling in part because of the large sample size, study length, and the institution’s reputation. Another strength is that researchers adjusted for several factors including baseline BMI, overall calorie intake, physical activity, and other lifestyle characteristics. This helps to address “correlation vs. causality” arguments (i.e. if wine drinkers exercise more, it is more likely that exercise is responsible for any reported benefits). A limitation of this study is that it relies on participants’ self-reporting. Not surprisingly, it’s been shown time and again that people are mildly inaccurate to outright dishonest when recalling what they eat and drink.

Popular theories linking wine and weight look at metabolic effects, potential anti-obesity properties of resveratrol, and behavioral factors. Research suggests that men don’t enjoy the same weight-related benefits of alcohol (sorry guys, I guess you’ll just have to take your higher lean body mass and correspondingly higher metabolisms and deal with it). Men may tend to add alcohol to their daily calorie tab, whereas women might be more likely to have a drink in lieu of food (shown in the current study). Additionally, there are differences in how men and women metabolize alcohol, with studies showing men experience little to no change compared to women’s slight increase in metabolism after imbibing.

I offer that if you are trying to prevent weight creep your favorite Malbec or Sauvignon Blanc can still be on the menu, in moderation of course (by two drinks it seems our livers start to become totally preoccupied with metabolizing alcohol over fat). Total deprivation never works as a weight maintenance strategy unless you possess superhuman will power or have excised your brain’s pleasure center.

I wish to close as a lover of all things wine, not just a nutrition nerd. For me, fruity sangria is the perfect light springtime quaff. I like this recipe because it has a minimal amount of sugar and does not sully the drink with sugary soda. Freeze some of the sangria in ice cube trays (the sangria cubes will remain slushy) to prevent watering down the drink with regular ice. Frozen grapes can also help keep it cool.

Celebration Sangria

(adapted from “Holiday Cocktails,” by Jessica Strand)
¼ cup sugar
1 cup water
Freshly squeezed juice of 1 orange
Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon
1 bottle (750 ml) of red wine, merlot works well (don’t break the bank on your choice)
1 ounce Cointreau (or triple sec)
6 ounces of sparkling water
4 oranges, thinly sliced
½ lemon, thinly sliced
½ lime, thinly sliced
½ Granny Smith apple, cored and thinly sliced
20 grapes
Bring sugar, water, orange, and lemon juices to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool. Pour red wine, Cointreau, and sparkling water into a pitcher or punch bowl. Add syrup to the mix followed by the fruit. Let “marinate” and chill in the fridge for several hours or overnight. Serves 8.

Questions and comments: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)