Glycerol and Ethanol in Red Wine Are Responsible for Urate-Related Increases in Plasma Antioxidant Capacity

Abstract

The acute increase in serum antioxidant capacity after red wine consumption was initially attributed to polyphenolics in the wine (1)(2). However, polyphenolics are poorly absorbed, and their plasma concentrations after wine consumption are insufficient to explain the observed increase in antioxidant capacity (3). Red wine consumption is also linked to the acute increase in serum urate concentration that significantly contributes to the observed increase in serum antioxidant capacity (4)(5). However, the exact wine compounds responsible for the increase in urate have not been determined. For our study, 9 healthy male nonsmoking volunteers (25–40 years of age) randomly consumed 4 beverages (3 mL/kg of body weight) in a cross-over design after an overnight …