Astronauts Need Red Wine in Space

Wine aficionados rejoice, red wine can offset the negative effects of weightlessness. The average individual is bound to have heard the health benefits of red wine; it is good for your heart, can prevent bone density loss and muscle atrophy. Astronauts are often plagued with these common problems This may not seem to be relevant to earthbound folks, but then again, studies suggest that just like the astronauts, sedentary people can benefit as well.

The human body needs physical activity, but when it is next to impossible to get proper exercise, science comes along to tell us that red wine will do a body good. Of course, resveratrol, the healthy compound in red wine, can be taken as a supplement, and it can also be found in grape juice, but why spoil the fun?

"A low gravity environment makes it nearly impossible for astronauts." says Gerald Weismann, M.D. editor-in-chief of FASEB Journal, "for the earthbound, barriers to physical activity are equally challenging, whether they be disease, injury, or a desk job

Russian doctors have long recommended alcohol for "neutralizing the harmful effect of the atmosphere," says Alexander Lazutkin, who served aboard the Mir space station. They say it keeps cosmonauts "in tone" and neutralizes tension.

Researchers in, where else but France, proved this theory. Scientists ran rats through tests that stimulated the weightlessness of spaceflight. Technically, they hung the rats by their tails. Officially called hind limb tail suspension, this common technique is used to study the physiology of weightlessness. Half the rats received daily doses of resveratrol, the property in red wine that is responsible for all the good press, the control group did not.

In this environment, the control group suffered. According to the Journal of the Federation of the American Societies for Experimental Biology, they developed insulin resistance, lost bone mineral and muscle density. The wino rats did not suffer any side effects of their "weightlessness."

The resveratrol in red wine is not a substitute for exercise. Sitting around drinking will not keep you healthy, but according to Weismann, "it could slow the deterioration until someone can get moving again."

Resources:
Space.com
Universe Today