According to Dutch researcher Dr. Henk Hendriks, of the TNO Nutrition and Food Research Institute, beer is more effective than red wine in preventing heart disease. (NBWA Beer Perspectives - May 2000) In this study of 111 healthy men, each were required to drink beer, red wine, spirits and water with dinner for a period of three weeks, four drinks a day. Then the men changed drinks and the experiment continued until each man had tried each beverage for three weeks.

The study revealed that beer contains vitamin B6, which prevents the buildup in the body of homocysteine, a chemical thought to be linked to an increase in the risk of heart disease. According to the researchers, homocysteine levels did not increase after beer consumption but rose after the men drank wine and spirits. Additionally, they found that beer drinkers had a 30 percent increase of vitamin B6 in their blood plasma. Hendriks said, “ Moderate alcohol consumption affects many processes in the body, one of which is the significant increase in HDL cholesterol - the good cholesterol.”
Magazine “FIRST for women,” May 22 issue: a recent study at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center found that drinking beer in moderation can reduce the risk of heart disease by up to 40 percent. The increase in HDL cholesterol thins the blood, which reduces the risk of blood clots.
In the Dutch study, it was specifically said, that the beers with the most vitamin B6 are the Living Beers from Belgium, beers refermented in the bottle or keg. (De Nieuwe Amsterdammer - June 2000)

Newsletter July 2000