Wine May Please the Palate but Not the Immune System

While the health benefits of drinking wine in moderation continue to make news, for some with allergies even a glass a day may be difficult to swallow. At the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in Boston, Nov. 3-8, allergists share the latest buzz on allergies to alcohol and tobacco.

“Although it’s rare, allergies to alcohol can cause symptoms such as red, itchy eyes, nasal congestion, upset stomach and difficulty breathing,” said allergist Sami Bahna, MD, ACAAI past president, and chief of Allergy and Immunology at Louisiana State University Medical School in Shreveport. “In most cases, simply understanding what triggers the allergic reaction will help the person find an alternative drink to enjoy.”

Reactions can be triggered by naturally occurring ingredients in beer and wine, including barley, ethanol, grapes, histamine, hops, malt, oats, tryptamine, tyramine, wheat, and yeast. Other potential allergens may be introduced to beer and wine during processing, including egg whites, which are sometimes used as a filtering agent, and sulfites, which occur naturally in wine but also may be added as a preservative.

Allergic reactions to alcohol can produce minor symptoms such as rash, or life-threatening reactions including asthma attacks and anaphylaxis. In his presentation, Dr. Bahna discusses case studies of patients who experience symptoms of asthma and anaphylaxis after drinking wine or beer. He points out that wine, particularly red wine, contains chemicals called tyramines that commonly cause headache.

“Individuals can be allergic to the alcohol itself or an added ingredient, but even when people are not allergic, they may not realize that alcohol can worsen existing allergy symptoms, particularly food allergies,” Dr. Bahna added.

Similar to diagnosing a food allergy, Dr. Bahna explains, once an allergist helps someone pinpoint which allergens are causing a reaction, simply avoiding the beverage is the best solution.

Drink wine its good for your immune system! Red wine unlike many other alcoholic beverages, does not subdue the immune system, according to nutrition researcher Susan Percival from the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. While red wine has been reported to aid in the prevention of heart disease and cancer, there has been no studies as to whether alcohol content might neutralise any benefits.

Percival's new research seems to indicate that the circulating white blood cells that fight infection are not helped, or hurt by red wine consumption. "There's been a lot of publicity lately on the health benefits of red wine, but we also know that alcohol suppresses the immune system. …So we wanted to find out whether red wine had a suppressive effect on immunity."

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Resveratrol, the polypherol in red wine, is a supplement that can turn on the sirtuin genes, which are programmed to keep the body alive. Every time you take resveratrol (more potent in supplement form), it "turns on" the genes that order the immune system and the body to stay alive.