Antioxidant properties French paradox

People in France eat a lot of fatty foods but suffer less from fatal heart strokes than people in the northern regions of Europe or in North America, where wine is not consumed on a regular basis ( French paradox ). There is an increased favorable effect from red wine. The unique cardioprotective properties of red wine are due to the action of flavonoids, which are minimal in white wine. The best-researched flavonoids are resveratrol and quercetin, which confer antioxidant properties more potent than a-tocopherol. 

There is a more interesting, and possibly more important, explanation. A principal difference between American and French diets is the consumption of wine, specifically red wine. Could there be something in wine that accounts for the French Paradox Attention has been focused on a class of compounds found in red wine called polyphenols (they are found in white wine as well but in much smaller amounts). These have potent antioxidant properties. Most of the attention has been focused on resveratrol ... 

Phenolic compounds play a major role in enol-ogy. They are responsible for all the differences between red and white wines, especially the color and flavor of red wines. They have interesting, healthful properties, responsible for the French paradox . They have bactericide, antioxidant and vitamin properties that apparently protect consumers from cardiovascular disease. 

Recent developments have also been initiated by the growing realization that the condensed tannins may additionally be credited for the profound health-beneficial properties of tea, fruit juices and red wine. This is mainly due to their in vitro radical scavenging (27) or antioxidant (22) biological properties, while the polymeric proanthocyanidins in red wine have been implicated in protection against cardiovascular disorders 23), e.g. the French paradox 24-26). 

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