Red Wine Not That Healthy After All, Study Shows

Attention, all red wine lovers: It turns out that glass of Merlot might not be as beneficial to your health as previously thought.

A new study released Monday found that low doses of resveratrol found in red wine and dark chocolate don’t lead to added health benefits. Resveratrol is a chemical with antioxidant properties found in a number of foods, including red wine, dark chocolate and berries. In the past, a number of studies have shown that consumption of these foods may reduce inflammation, leading researchers to speculate that their common chemical must have explained the phenomenon.

But the study finds otherwise. A team of researchers tracked the health of nearly 800 villagers from Tuscany, the region in Italy where the wine Chianty is made, to see if their drinking habits had any discernable impact on their well-being. They concluded that resveratrol concentration was not linked with cardiovascular disease or cancer rates.

It’s not all bad news, though. While you may have to cut down your wine consumption, you can still hold on to that bar of chocolate: There’s still pretty strong evidence that it may be good for your heart.