This paper estimates changes in demand for imported wines by source country and resulting welfare effects due to Section 301 tariffs imposed on certain European wines in October 2019. A two-stage expenditure allocation scheme is used to estimate the import demand for red, white, and other wines in the first stage, and source-differentiated red wine and white wine demand in the second stage. From derived price elasticities measuring first and second stage interactions, welfare measures are simulated capturing effects of the new tariffs on both taxed and non-taxed exporters as well as the US importers of red and white wine.

We used a survey to investigate some motives for drinking red, sparkling, and white wine among 3,433 Norwegian respondents. Respondents with interest in wine drank all types of wine more frequently than those with little interest. Interest in cultural activities, which often are associated with wine consumption, also increased the frequency of consumption of all types of wine. Respondents who scored high on conspicuous attitudes drank sparkling and white wine more frequently than respondents with low scores. However, conspicuous attitudes did not affect the frequency of red wine consumption. (JEL Classifications: D12, Q13).

Flavonoids are bioactive compounds found in foods such as tea, red wine, fruits and vegetables. Higher intakes of specific flavonoids, and flavonoid-rich foods, have been linked to reduced mortality from specific vascular diseases and cancers. However, the importance of flavonoid-rich foods, and flavonoids, in preventing all-cause mortality remains uncertain. As such, we examined the association of intake of flavonoid-rich foods and flavonoids with subsequent mortality among 93 145 young and middle-aged women in the Nurses’ Health Study II. During 1 838 946 person-years of follow-up, 1808 participants died. When compared with non-consumers, frequent consumers of red wine, tea, peppers, blueberries and strawberries were at reduced risk of all-cause mortality (P<0·05), with the strongest associations observed for red wine and tea; multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios 0·60 (95 % CI 0·49, 0·74) and 0·73 (95 % CI 0·65, 0·83), respectively. Conversely, frequent grapefruit consumers were at increased risk of all-cause mortality, compared with their non-grapefruit consuming counterparts (P<0·05). When compared with those in the lowest consumption quintile, participants in the highest quintile of total-flavonoid intake were at reduced risk of all-cause mortality in the age-adjusted model; 0·81 (95 % CI 0·71, 0·93). However, this association was attenuated following multivariable adjustment; 0·92 (95 % CI 0·80, 1·06). Similar results were observed for consumption of flavan-3-ols, proanthocyanidins and anthocyanins. Flavonols, flavanones and flavones were not associated with all-cause mortality in any model. Despite null associations at the compound level and select foods, higher consumption of red wine, tea, peppers, blueberries and strawberries, was associated with reduced risk of total and cause-specific mortality. These findings support the rationale for making food-based dietary recommendations.

Previous studies on the association between alcohol intake and the development of the metabolic syndrome (MetS) have yielded inconsistent results. Besides, few studies have analysed the effects of red wine (RW) consumption on the prevalence of the MetS and its components. As moderate RW drinkers have a better lipid profile and lower incidence rates of diabetes, hypertension and abdominal obesity, all components of the MetS, it was hypothesised that moderate RW consumption could be associated with a lower prevalence of the MetS. In the present cross-sectional study of 5801 elderly participants at a high cardiovascular risk included in the PREDIMED (Prevención con Dieta Mediterránea) study, 3897 fulfilled the criteria of the MetS at baseline. RW intake was recorded using a validated 137-item FFQ. Multiple logistic regression analysis was carried out to estimate the association between RW intake and the prevalence of the MetS. Compared with non-drinkers, moderate RW drinkers ( ≥ 1 drink/d) were found to have a reduced risk of prevalent MetS (OR 0·56, 95 % CI 0·45, 0·68; P< 0·001), a lower risk of having an abnormal waist circumference (OR 0·59, 95 % CI 0·46, 0·77; P< 0·001), low HDL-cholesterol concentrations (OR 0·42, 95 % CI 0·32, 0·53; P< 0·001), high blood pressure (OR 0·28, 95 % CI 0·17, 0·45; P< 0·001) and high fasting plasma glucose concentrations (OR 0·67, 95 % CI 0·54, 0·82; P< 0·001) after adjusting for several confounders. This association was found to be stronger in female participants, in participants aged < 70 years and in participants who were former or current smokers. No significant association was found between RW intake ( ≥ 1 drink/d) and TAG concentrations. In conclusion, moderate RW consumption is associated with a lower prevalence of the MetS in an elderly Mediterranean population at a high cardiovascular risk.

Moderate wine consumption has been shown to lower cardiovascular risk. One of the mechanisms could involve the control of postprandial hyperlipaemia, a well-defined risk factor for atherosclerosis, reasonably by reducing the absorption of lipid oxidised species from the meal. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether wine consumption with the meal is able to reduce the postprandial increase in plasma lipid hydroperoxides and cholesterol oxidation products, in human subjects. In two different study sessions, twelve healthy volunteers consumed the same test meal rich in oxidised and oxidisable lipids (a double cheeseburger), with 300 ml of water (control) or with 300 ml of red wine (wine). The postprandial plasma concentration of cholesterol oxidation products was measured by GC–MS. The control meal induced a significant increase in the plasma concentration of lipid hydroperoxides and of two cholesterol oxidation products, 7-β-hydroxycholesterol and 7-ketocholesterol. The postprandial increase in lipid hydroperoxides and cholesterol oxidation products was fully prevented by wine when consumed with the meal. In conclusion, the present study provides evidence that consumption of wine with the meal could prevent the postprandial increase in plasma cholesterol oxidation products.

We have studied the effect of human serum, collected after red wine consumption (RWS), on TNF-α-dependent activation of transcription factors (NF-κB, activator protein-1 (AP-1) and cAMP response element-binding proteins) and on the expression of selected genes involved in cell adhesion or fibrinolysis processes in human primary endothelial cells (human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC)). Our data indicate that RWS containing RW metabolites, isolated after 40 min from an acute consume of wine (5 ml/kg body weight), induces nuclear translocation of NF-κB and AP-1 in the absence of any further stimulus. On the other hand, TNF-α treatment in the presence of RWS is associated with a delay in transcription factor activation and to a negative modulation on the expression of specific genes. Moreover, RWS stimulates c-jun binding to the tissue-type plasminogen activator cAMP responsive element consensus site modulating the expression of the specific gene downstream. These results confirm that RW metabolites affect the activity of different transcription factors playing an important preconditioning role in the modulation of the inflammatory pathway in endothelial cells. This is the first report on the effects of a complex food matrix, on the molecular mechanisms associated with inflammatory response in HUVEC cultured in condition that reproduces the physiological environment occurring in vivo.

Several food items of plant origin, and in particular red wine, have been reported to protect from cardiovascular disease (CVD) development, thanks to their polyphenol components. Polyphenols undergo complex metabolic transformation during digestion and intestinal absorption. Here we report a novel model to study the effects of complex food matrices, applied to red wine, on gene expression in cultured primary human endothelial cells that takes into account the polyphenol metabolic transformation. Red wine was administered to human volunteers acting as ‘bio-reactors’. Serum (RWS) obtained after 40 min was utilized to enrich endothelial cell culture media. The expression of specific genes involved in cell adhesion (vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM), intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM) and monocytes chemoattractant protein (MCP-1)) and fibrinolysis (tissue-plasminogen activator (t-PA), plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) and plasminogen activator inhibitor-2 (PAI-2)) was considered as a molecular marker of cell function and related to the effects of RWS. The gene expression profile determined by RWS incubation was significantly different from that observed after the addition of red wine. Data obtained by this approach indicate the importance of taking into account the complex metabolic transformation of polyphenols that occurs during absorption when studying their effect on human health.

The effects of moderate red wine consumption on the antioxidant status and indices of lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress associated with CHD were investigated. A randomised, controlled study was performed with twenty free-living healthy volunteers. Subjects in the red wine group consumed 375 ml red wine daily for 2 weeks. We measured the total concentration of phenolics and analysed the individual phenolics in the wine and plasma by HPLC with tandem MS. The antioxidant capacity of plasma was measured with electron spin resonance spectroscopy while homocysteine and fasting plasma lipids were also determined. The production of conjugated dienes and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) were measured in Cu-oxidised LDL. Plasma total phenolic concentrations increased significantly after 2 weeks of daily red wine consumption (P≤0·001) and trace levels of metabolites, mainly glucuronides and methyl glucuronides of (+)-catechin and (−)-epicatechin, were detected in the plasma of the red wine group. These flavan-3-ol metabolites were not detected in plasma from the control group. The maximum concentrations of conjugated dienes and TBARS in Cu-oxidised LDL were reduced (P≤0·05) and HDL cholesterol concentrations increased (P≤0·05) following red wine consumption. The findings from the present study provide some evidence for potential protective effects of moderate consumption of red wine in healthy volunteers.

The effects of red wine and ethanol on plasma lipoproteins and the fatty acid composition of kidney lipids and erythrocytes phospholipids were studied. Lipid peroxidation is one of the main deleterious effects of oxidant attack on biomolecules, due to the disruption of the structural integrity of membranes. The vulnerability of the kidney to oxidative damage has been partly attributed to its high content of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids. Antioxidants, such as flavonoids, would be a means of reducing the risk of oxidative damage to membranes. Nutritional sources rich in antioxidants, including those provided by wine, are expected to attenuate the effects of oxidative challenges. Adult rats were fed red wine rich in flavonols, ethanol (125 ml/l), or alcohol-free red wine. The control group drank water. After 10 weeks, blood samples served to measure plasma lipoproteins and antioxidant capacity. Kidney lipids and erythrocyte phospholipids were extracted. The samples were assayed by GLC. Energy intake did not differ between all the groups, but the weight gain of the ethanol group was less than the other three groups. Blood HDL and triacylglycerols were increased by both ethanol and red wine. Ethanol decreased arachidonic and docosahexaenoic acids in both kidney lipids and erythrocyte phospholipids, as compared with either water, red wine or alcohol-free red wine groups. These results indicate that non-alcoholic components of red wine could contribute to avoiding the unfavourable effects of ethanol on plasma lipoproteins, kidney lipids and membrane erythrocyte phospholipids.