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 Rosacea (pronounced "roh-zay-sha") is a chronic and potentially life-disruptive disorder primarily of the facial skin, often characterized by flare-ups and remissions. Typically it begins any time after the age of 30 years as redness on the cheeks, nose, chin or forehead that may come and go. It appears to be more common among fair-skinned people and affects an estimated 5% of Americans.
A new study from Brown University points to white wine as a potential reason for women who may develop this skin condition. Researchers studied data from 82,737 female nurses in the U.S. and found that women who consumed one to three glasses of white wine a month had a 14 percent increase in the risk of developing Rosacea. Sipping five or more glasses of white wine increased their risk of developing this skin condition by 49%.
These statistics are relevant more for fair-skinned women, particularly in the US. The effect on men is not known since the subjects in the study were all women.
The study also looked at liquor and red wine consumption. Liquor drinkers saw an 8 to 28 percent increase depending upon how much they drank in a month, while red wine was not proven to be a significant risk in Rosacea development at all.
 The findings are based on 14 years of data collected from 82,737 women, with 4,945 cases of Rosacea. Information on alcohol consumption was collected every 4 years during follow-up. Information on history of clinician-diagnosed Rosacea and year of diagnosis was collected from 1991 to 2005.
Red wine had previously been found to aggravate pre-existing case of Rosacea, but now white wine is blamed for increasing the onset. Effect of alcohol on immunity and blood vessels are suspected to play a role. “It is not a causal relationship,” said lead author Wen-Qing Li, assistant professor of dermatology and epidemiology.
Despite this reported bad news for health, there still are some benefits to drinking wine. According to another study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, white wine could be just as powerful as red in improving heart function and preventing artery blockage. Moreover, moderate red wine consumption has been found to help prevent heart attacks, increase the amount of HDL "good" cholesterol, and decrease the chances of blood clotting. |