By Chris Cosci

With people growing ever more health-conscious, it's no surprise that an abundant amount of scientific research goes into studying the foods we eat and the beverages we drink. However, there is one substance that seems to receive a significant amount of attention from researchers: wine.

Wine-related research gained a lot of attention as a possible solution to the French paradox. The French paradox revolves around the mystery of how French people can stay so thin when their diets consist primarily of butter, cheese and croissants. In the early '90s, the French habit of drinking wine became a popular explanation. This led to many studies about how wine could improve one's health. Some experts insist that the real explanation is that the French just eat smaller portions, but people looking for an excuse to drink more wine know better.

These days, you can barely pull the cork out of a bottle before a new report is released on the health benefits of drinking wine. Over the past few years, there have been studies that show how drinking wine can help people live longer, reduce the risk of strokes, and even prevent certain forms of cancer. It's only a matter of time before we're told that drinking wine can prevent hair loss and restore vision to the blind.

Oddly enough, most reports claim that these results come only from drinking red wine, which suggests that white wine will conversely break down your immune system and cause you to break out in hives. And don't even think about the side effects of wine coolers. (Three words: spontaneous human combustion.)

So what is so magical about red wine that makes it such a wonder serum? For one thing, red wine contains special antioxidant compounds called polyphenals, which are found in the seeds and skins of wine grapes. These compounds have been shown to protect cells from damage caused by molecules that affect proteins, membranes and even DNA. Before this gets too technical, let's just say that after a few more steps, you come to the conclusion that red wine can help prevent cancer. Just accept it.

The real issue is that researchers seem obsessed with finding the health benefits of drinking wine, as if they're trying to justify their drinking habits. They probably spent years listening to their spouses yelling at them. "Look at you -- drinking again! No wonder you can't cure any diseases. You probably just sit around the lab with your friends and drink wine all day." Imagine how much better they feel when they come home one night and show off their latest research. "See? All that wine I've been drinking has prevented me from having heart problems. Now, where's my cabernet?"

Taking the research a step further, the University of Alabama in Birmingham recently established the Center for Wine and Cardiovascular Health. The research at this center is made possible by what the university claims is "the first multidisciplinary programmatic grant in the United States focused specifically on studies of mechanisms underlying wine and cardiovascular health." I guess singular disciplinary studies were no longer enough to convince the researchers' spouses.

While all of this may seem like great news to wine aficionados, every study comes with a common one-word disclaimer: moderation. The health benefits can only be enjoyed with one or two glasses of wine a day. Overindulgence can lead to other health problems, not to mention the increased likelihood of belting out Village People songs in public.

However, as long as you keep your wine intake under control, you might be able to help yourself lead a long and healthy life. And now that we're all aware of this, maybe the researchers can start working on something new. If they tried, I bet they could find some health benefit to staring at a computer screen all day.