Doctor prescribes two glasses of wine a day to 10,000 patients to prevent heart attacks

A top doctor says red wine really does stop heart attacks after prescribing two glasses a day to 10,000 patients. Dr William McCrea has been advising coronary heart disease patients to drink a 125ml glass of red wine each morning and another at night for 10 years. The cardiologist claims the antioxidants in the drink have slashed the risk of a second heart attack in his patients by half and cut the risk of a stroke by 20%. Dr McCrea, 58, said: “I’ve given it to 10,000 patients. If you drink it moderately – no more than two glasses – it has a beneficial effect. "It prevents clots from developing inside the arteries, it raises good cholesterol called HDL and it causes dilatation of the arteries. “You would have to drink five litres of fruit juice to get the same benefits.” Dr McCrea began trials at the Great Western Hospital in Swindon, Wilts, after a study revealed the French had fewer heart attacks despite a high fat diet. He recommends Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile and Shiraz and Pinot Noir from South Africa. Younger wines with screw tops are better because older vintages lose antioxidants in the barrel and cork absorbs them, he said.