Glass Of Wine Research Articles

Regular wine consumption in chronic heart failure: impact on outcomes, quality of life, and circulating biomarkers.

Moderate, regular alcohol consumption is generally associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular events but data in patients with chronic heart failure are scarce. We evaluated the relations between wine consumption, health status, circulating biomarkers, and clinical outcomes in a large Italian population of patients with chronic heart failure enrolled in a multicenter clinical trial. A brief questionnaire on dietary habits was administered at baseline to 6973 patients enrolled in the Gruppo Italiano per lo Studio della Sopravvivenza nell'Insufficienza Cardiaca-Heart Failure (GISSI-HF) trial. The relations between wine consumption, fatal and nonfatal clinical end points, quality of life, symptoms of depression, and circulating biomarkers of cardiac function and inflammation (in subsets of patients) were evaluated with simple and multivariable-adjusted statistical models. Almost 56% of the patients reported drinking at least 1 glass of wine per day. After adjustment, clinical outcomes were not significantly different in the predefined 4 groups of wine consumption. However, patients with more frequent wine consumption had a significantly better perception of health status (Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire score, adjusted P<0.0001), less frequent symptoms of depression (Geriatric Depression Scale, adjusted P=0.01), and lower plasma levels of biomarkers of vascular inflammation (osteoprotegerin and C-terminal proendothelin-1, adjusted P<0.0001, and pentraxin-3, P=0.01) after adjusting for possible confounders. We show for the first time in a large cohort of patients with chronic heart failure that moderate wine consumption is associated with a better perceived and objective health status, lower prevalence of depression, and less vascular inflammation, but does not translate into more favorable clinical 4-year outcomes. URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT0033633.

An Intellectual Entertainment: The Nature of the Mind

The setting is a garden in Elysium. The sun is shining. A rich verdant lawn is surrounded by flower beds and flowering bushes, with a grove of magnificent trees behind. Beyond, a large lake and in the distance high mountains. Five comfortable garden chairs are placed in the shade of some trees. There is a low table on which are placed a wine decanter and glasses, three of which are half full. Richard, Jill and Frank are deep in discussion.

Influence of the glassware on the perception of alcoholic drinks

Two studies are reported in which the effect of glassware was investigated on subjective ratings of, and willingness-to-pay for, alcoholic drinks. Participants from China (Study 1) and the USA (Study 2) viewed online photographs of red wine, white wine, beer, whisky, and Chinese baijiu presented in 6 different glasses, including a narrow, wide, or stemless wine glass, a highball or rocks glass, and a beer mug. They rated liking, familiarity, and congruency (between the drink and the glassware), as well as how much they would be willing to pay for the drinks. Both the type of drink and the type of glassware influenced participants’ subjective ratings of, and willingness-to-pay for, the drinks. The red and white wine were liked more, and people were willing to pay significantly more for if they thought that the glassware was congruent with the contents. These findings highlight the influence of content–context congruency on consumers’ subjective ratings and willingness-to-pay.

Resonance in a head massager

Mechanical structures such as pendula, bridges, or buildings always exhibit one (or more) natural oscillation frequency.1 If that structure is subjected to oscillatory forces of this same frequency, resonance occurs, with consequent increase of the structure oscillation amplitude. There is no shortage of simple experiments for demonstrating resonance in high school classes using a variety of materials, such as saw blades,2 guitars,3 pendulums,4 wine glasses,5 bottles,6 Ping-Pong balls,7 and pearl strings.8 We present here an experimental demonstration using only an inexpensive head (or scalp) massager, which can be purchased for less than a dollar.

Wine, alcohol and pills: What future for the French paradox?

The present review discusses the acquisitions obtained to date on the subject of wine consumption, health and cardiovascular protection. We distinguished the cardiovascular effects related to the consumption of wine and other alcoholic beverages focusing on non-alcoholic wine fraction: polyphenols and especially resveratrol. In the second part of the review we have addressed the issue of resveratrol bioavailability and the importance of wine matrix and phytocomplex highlighting the biological effects that can be obtained with nutraceuticals and resveratrol pills compared to the daily consumption of a glass of red wine.

“My midwife said that having a glass of red wine was actually better for the baby”: a focus group study of women and their partner’s knowledge and experiences relating to alcohol consumption in pregnancy

BackgroundWhile it is well established that alcohol can cross the placenta to the foetus and can affect an infant’s development, many women continue to drink during pregnancy. For this reason it is important to determine what information is being provided, what information may be missing, and the preferred sources of information on this issue. In order to improve prevention strategies, we sought to understand the knowledge and experiences of pregnant women and their partners regarding the effects of alcohol consumption during pregnancy.MethodsThe current study utilised a qualitative study design in order to gain insight into the views and experiences of pregnant women, newly delivered mothers and their partners. Focus groups examined the participant’s knowledge about the effects of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, the sources of information on this issue, and the psycho-social influences on their drinking behaviour. Five focus groups were conducted involving a total of 21 participants (17 female). A six-stage thematic analysis framework was used to analyse all focus group discussions in a systematic way.ResultsSeven major themes were identified from the focus group data: 1) knowledge of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders; 2) message content and sources; 3) healthcare system; 4) society and culture; 5) partner role; 6) evaluation of risk; and 7) motivation. The findings indicated that although the majority of participants knew not to drink alcohol in pregnancy they had limited information on the specific harmful effects. In addition, routine enquiry and the provision of information by health care professionals were seen as lacking.ConclusionsThe findings of this research provide important insights in to the relationship between pregnant women, their partners, and their healthcare providers. Several recommendations can be made on the basis of these findings. Firstly, public health messages and educational materials need to provide clear and consistent information about the effects of alcohol consumption on the developing baby. Additionally, more thorough and consistent routine enquiry for alcohol consumption in pregnant women needs to occur. Finally, it is important to ensure ongoing education for health professionals on the issue of alcohol consumption during pregnancy.

A glass half full: Demonstrations of some surprising effects of fluid loading on the resonance of wine glasses (and other vessels)

A popular and (perhaps) provocative demonstration in an introductory course on acoustics and vibration involves asking students to predict what happens to the tap tone of a wine glass when liquid is added. Although their predictions are often incorrect, students readily accept the explanation of mass loading for why the pitch decreases, having already seen what happens to the frequency of a mass-spring system when mass is added. But is the pitch-lowering effect the same for all vibrational modes? Does it depend on the shape or thickness of the glass? For students beyond the introductory level, these questions stimulate deeper thinking about fluid-structure interaction. Predictions can be verified with a very simple apparatus.

Arterial compliance may be reduced by ingestion of red wine.

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of alcohol on blood pressure and arterial compliance over 24 h in a group of volunteers, comparing the same group of subjects on two consecutive but separate days, one with alcohol intake (alcohol day) and one free of alcohol (control day). We studied 18 healthy subjects (mean age 34.2 years, range 25-53). The subjects received the two days in random order. On the alcohol day, the subjects were asked to drink two glasses of red wine (12% ethanol) between 1830 hours and 0430 hours. Measurements of heart rate, blood pressure and QKD interval (Q wave to Korotkoff (K) sound, diastolic phase (D) using Diasys Integra (Novacor, France)) were recorded (usually 1500 hours to 1500 hours). Three 'ingestion' periods were defined, from 1500 hours to 1830 hours ('before'), 1900 hours to 0430 hours ('during') and from 0430 hours to the following afternoon ('after') on both the alcohol day and on the control day. Red wine increased heart rate during alcohol ingestion and reduced arterial compliance after ingestion. The significant effect of interaction between day and ingestion period on heart rate, diastolic blood pressure and QKD were found, suggesting that the differences in response among the ingestion periods depended on whether alcohol has been consumed that day. For the first time our study indicates the effect of alcohol on 24 h arterial stiffness in a healthy group of volunteers.

Dinner with Lenny: The Last Long Interview with Leonard Bernstein by Jonathan Cott, and: Creating Musical Theatre: Conversations with Broadway Directors and Choreographers by Lyn Cramer (review)

Reviewed by: Dinner with Lenny: The Last Long Interview with Leonard Bernstein by Jonathan Cott, and: Creating Musical Theatre: Conversations with Broadway Directors and Choreographers by Lyn Cramer Jim Williams Dinner with Lenny: The Last Long Interview with Leonard Bernstein. By Cott, Jonathan. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013. Cloth $24.95. 192 pages. Creating Musical Theatre: Conversations with Broadway Directors and Choreographers. By Cramer, Lyn. New York: Bloomsbury Methuen Drama, 2013. Paper $32.45. 304 pages. A widely accepted assumption in the arts (especially in educational arts) is that the creative process of the artist is often more interesting and insightful than the artistic product itself. Jonathan Cott’s My Dinner With Lenny and Lyn Cramer’s Creating Musical Theatre: Conversations with Broadway Directors and Choreographers both focus on the artist’s journey from the seed of conceptuality to the manifestation of the artistic work just prior to its completion. The interviews by Cramer with established Broadway choreographers and directors mostly explore the stages the artists pass through to gain a foothold in the musical theatre world and their rehearsal techniques as they move toward a Broadway production. In many ways it serves as a “how to” book from the perspective of professional practitioners. In contrast, Cott’s informal interview with Leonard Bernstein elicits an eclectic range of artistic, social, and political topics that demonstrates the breadth of Bernstein’s long career as a conductor, composer, social activist, and cultural icon. The interview is not about Bernstein’s reflections on his oeuvre, but rather a dissection of how he approached his work and the influences that guided him. His voice is very present throughout the interview, giving credence to his statement, “You can reverse time through memory when memory becomes an anticipation of the event remembered, thereby making it into the future. So that when you remember it, it becomes the now” (139). Cott’s Dinner with Lenny is publicized as “the last long interview with Leonard Bernstein,” conducted over the course of twelve consecutive hours in one evening, a year before Bernstein’s death. The interview was supposed to be an eight thousand-word assignment for Rolling Stone magazine, which published excerpts of it in 1990, but Cott’s transcript far exceeded the maximum length. Dinner with Lenny encapsulates the full interview in this slim, but copious book. The transcript balances Bernstein’s energetic combination of charisma and chutzpah with his erudite and perceptive commentaries. Cott is the author of several books and interviews with musicians including Glenn Gould, Bob Dylan, and John Lennon. He does not disguise the fact that he is a longtime fan of Bernstein, and the conversation reveals Cott’s own astuteness and education in music theory and history. In his prelude, Cott chronicles Bernstein’s career “high points,” beginning with his transilient national debut on November 14, 1943 as a last-minute substitute to conduct the New York Philharmonic. It was this performance that previewed [End Page 182] Bernstein’s theatrical, passionate, and animated conducting style, which would later provide fodder for those critics who would deride his flamboyant showmanship. Cott briefly recounts Bernstein’s successful televised New York Philharmonic Young People’s Concerts, his 1973 Charles Eliot Norton lectures, his receipt of numerous Grammy and Emmy awards, and his own authoring of five books. In the interview Bernstein is polemical yet humble, opinionated though scholarly on a wide spectrum of topics. At times, the interview is a free-association collage of overlapping subjects and musical events fueled by Bernstein’s chain-smoking, vibrant discourse and supplemented by the glasses of wine and vodka in which both men indulged throughout the course of the evening. Yet the conversation never veers off to sloppy or garrulous banter. Cott’s skill as an interviewer is knowing when to let his subject speak at length and how to pursue follow-up questions in a manner that maintains the informality of casual conversation over drinks and dinner. In this setting Bernstein comes across joyfully loquacious and thoughtful in his evaluations and anecdotes of classical and contemporary composers, his enthusiasm for teaching, and his often self-effacing commentary on his own legacy—not only in music—but also...

Cocteau, and: Babylonian Commercial Company Interview, Excerpt

Cocteau, and: Babylonian Commercial Company Interview, Excerpt Kate Partridge (bio) Cocteau In Siduri’s time, stormspass like motorcycles up the coast—bluntand roaring in their paths, but brief. She improvisesa shelter—her back below the thick spine of the table,the only restraint against walking into the wind,pitchy outside between bursts of sand, static songshe could disappear in if not for the throbbingin her teeth. [End Page 20] Babylonian Commercial Company Interview, Excerpt Interviewer: You’re aware that it’s likely You won’t have any customers For several months, at least. Siduri: Yes. I: Will you have any family members traveling with you? S: A wine glass. I: Pets? S: My voice, when it isn’t lost. I: What will you do during that time? S: Practice my penmanship. I: Really. S: Play strip poker with the horsemaids. Translate the complete works of Philip Glass using the collision of sea-objects. Build temples out of firewood and burn them down. [End Page 21] I: Are you mourning anyone? S: Used to hop the fence behind the school and line up 20 hockey balls across the 50 yard line, then drill them into the cage one by one. In our neighborhood, this sound was gunfire. Cops surrounded the field and flipped their headlights on at once. Bright! Young! Strong! Muscular! I: Are you mourning anyone? S: She was always going out in the dark. [End Page 22] Kate Partridge Kate Partridge received her MFA from George Mason University, and her poems and lyric essays have appeared in Colorado Review, Carolina Quarterly, RHINO, BLOOM, Better: Culture & Lit, and Verse Daily. She lives in Anchorage, where she teaches at the University of Alaska and co-edits Gazing Grain Press. Copyright © 2015 University of Wisconsin Board of Regents

Beer and wine consumption and risk of knee or hip osteoarthritis: a case control study.

IntroductionThe aim of this study was to investigate the association between alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages and knee or hip osteoarthritis (OA).MethodsWe conducted a case–control study of Caucasian men and women aged 45 to 86 years of age from Nottingham, UK. Cases had clinically severe symptoms and radiographic knee or hip OA; controls had no symptoms and no radiographic knee or hip OA. Exposure information was sought using interview-based questionnaires and a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire to assess beverage consumption at ages 21 to 50 years. Odds ratios (ORs), adjusted ORs (aORs), 95% confidence intervals (CI) and P values were estimated using logistic regression models.ResultsA total of 1,001 knee OA, 993 hip OA and 933 control participants were included in the study. Increasing beer consumption was associated with an increasing risk of OA (P for trend ≤0.001). Compared to those who did not consume beer, aORs for people who consumed 20 or more servings of beer were 1.93 (95% CI 1.26 to 2.94) and 2.15 (95% CI 1.45 to 3.19) for knee OA and hip OA, respectively. In contrast, increasing levels of wine consumption were associated with decreased likelihood of knee OA (P for trend <0.001). Compared to those who did not consume wine, aOR for knee OA among those who consumed 4 to 6 glasses of wine per week and ≥7 glasses of wine per week was 0.55 (95% CI 0.34 to 0.87) and 0.48 (95% CI 0.29 to 0.80), respectively. No association was identified between non-alcoholic beverages and knee or hip OA.ConclusionsBeer consumption appears to be a risk factor for knee and hip OA whereas consumption of wine has a negative association with knee OA. The mechanism behind these findings is speculative but warrants further study.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13075-015-0534-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Mystique of the educator in carrying out teaching activities

The beginning of this century has been characterized by the continuity of many achievements but also by a series of challenges, including the human condition itself, which continues to be affected, especially in its subjectivity and inter-subjectivity. This reality, along with so many others, is fundamentally a remnant of a tension between local and global, between personal and social, or between material and spiritual. However, such tendencies are constantly linked and cross over one another, somehow compromising all institutional environments and impinging upon all human phenomena. The educational system and educators lie within this scenario, and the exercise of their educational mission would require, among other things, a mystique. The proposal of a mystique is hereby linked to the metaphor of a “wine glass”, with a greater similarity to the structure, form, and organization of the school, so as to then recognize the relevance of the “flavor of the wine”, which is identified with the educational mystique as stemming from inner experience, a dynamic of connectedness, and an experience of transcendence. In this context, a mystique of the educator should also be highlighted by means of a biological energy, a dialogical movement, and an analogical light.

Diet and health. What can you believe: or does bacon kill you?

Diet and health. What can you believe: or does bacon kill you?

Benjamin Franklin and his glass armonica: from music as therapeutic to pathological.

In 1762, Benjamin Franklin, then in London, wrote a letter to a colleague in Italy describing his latest invention, a musical instrument he called the "armonica," which was based on how rubbing a wet finger on the rims of wine glasses could produce musical tones. In contrast to earlier sets of wine glasses that could be tapped or rubbed, Franklin put a set of glass bowls differing in size on a horizontal rod turned by a food treadle, thus freeing both hands for touching the rotating glasses and allowing musicians to play more than two glasses at a time, as well as eliminating the nuisance of water tuning. Franklin played his instrument for pleasure, to manipulate the "passions" (emotions) and to treat melancholia. Nevertheless, late in his lifetime some individuals began to view glass armonica music differently, alleging it could cause nerve damage and mental problems. Here, we look at how Franklin used his glass armonica to manipulate the passions and examine what he must have thought about it supposedly causing health problems. We present Franklin as an empiricist, whose focus was more on results than theories; as an astute student of human behavior understanding the power of charms and other "nonsense"; and as a man of medicine living in an era when much was being attributed to the nerves, even though next to nothing was really known about the underlying nerve force.

Postpartum hypernatremic cerebral encephalopathy with osmotic myelinolysis: Report of two cases and review with emphasis on magnetic resonance imaging findings

Postpartum complications are diverse. Electrolyte imbalance with hypernatremia can occur secondary to underlying postpartum complication or can arise de novo. Hypernatremia causes demyelination similar to hyponatremia but predominantly involves extra-pontine structures. Here, we present two cases, one classical and another a variant of a recently described entity called postpartum hypernatremic encephalopathy with osmotic demyelination. The more classical appearance is altered signal intensity changes in the posterior limb of internal capsules, external capsule, crus cerebri, corticopontine tracts, middle cerebellar peduncle, hippocampus, fornix, and cerebellar white matter with classical wine glass appearance on coronal T2-weighted images. The nonclassical case shows a different and atypical imaging finding of the same disease with small focal transient altered signal intensity changes in the splenium of corpus callosum. Both the patients recovered with conservative management of the electrolyte imbalance.

A sniffer-camera for imaging of ethanol vaporization from wine: the effect of wine glass shape.

A two-dimensional imaging system (Sniffer-camera) for visualizing the concentration distribution of ethanol vapor emitting from wine in a wine glass has been developed. This system provides image information of ethanol vapor concentration using chemiluminescence (CL) from an enzyme-immobilized mesh. This system measures ethanol vapor concentration as CL intensities from luminol reactions induced by alcohol oxidase and a horseradish peroxidase (HRP)-luminol-hydrogen peroxide system. Conversion of ethanol distribution and concentration to two-dimensional CL was conducted using an enzyme-immobilized mesh containing an alcohol oxidase, horseradish peroxidase, and luminol solution. The temporal changes in CL were detected using an electron multiplier (EM)-CCD camera and analyzed. We selected three types of glasses-a wine glass, a cocktail glass, and a straight glass-to determine the differences in ethanol emission caused by the shape effects of the glass. The emission measurements of ethanol vapor from wine in each glass were successfully visualized, with pixel intensity reflecting ethanol concentration. Of note, a characteristic ring shape attributed to high alcohol concentration appeared near the rim of the wine glass containing 13 °C wine. Thus, the alcohol concentration in the center of the wine glass was comparatively lower. The Sniffer-camera was demonstrated to be sufficiently useful for non-destructive ethanol measurement for the assessment of food characteristics.

Application of Kansei Engineering and Box-Behnken response surface methodology for shape parameter design: A case study of wine glass

Application of Kansei Engineering and Box-Behnken response surface methodology for shape parameter design: A case study of wine glass

Gender differences in the association of hazardous alcohol use with hypertension in an urban cohort of people living with HIV in South Florida.

ObjectiveIndustrialized countries are currently experiencing an epidemic of high blood pressure (HBP) extending to people living with HIV (PLWH). Given the prevalence of hazardous alcohol use (HAU), this study examines the relationship between alcohol consumption and hypertension in PLWH. Including a gender analysis is critical, given the high rates of HAU and HIV among females.MethodWe followed PLWH including both HAU and non-HAU (200 each). Participants were assessed twice for body weight, blood pressure, alcohol consumption, and other BP-associated lifestyle factors. High blood pressure (defined as systolic/diastolic blood pressure above 140/90 mmHg and/or treatment of HBP) was the primary outcome.ResultsOverall prevalence of hypertension was 38% and higher among HAU compared to non-HAU (42% vs. 34%, p = 0.02). Less than half with HBP (42%) were receiving treatment for hypertension. Overall, males had a 50% higher risk of HBP than women (odds ratio: 1.5, 95% CI: 1–2.6, p = 0.05). However among HAU, females were twice as likely to suffer HBP as their male counterparts (95% CI: 1–3.9, p = 0.02). Those HAU who preferred liquor, versus wine, had higher adjusted mean BP (132.6±18 vs. 122.3±14 mm Hg, p = 0.05). Additional analyses indicated that consumption of >1 standard drink of liquor or beer/day was associated with HBP. Risk of hypertension was noted in those with daily consumption of >3 glasses of wine. For those reporting <1 drink per day, the odds ratio of having HBP was 0.97 (CI: 0.6–0.99, p = 0.05). Factors associated with hypertension in the multivariate model included increased age, gender, BMI, HAU particularly of liquor, and smoking.ConclusionsExcessive hypertension burden in this population and its association with HAU and sub-optimal care indicate the need for preventive and educational intervention in PLWH. Analyses highlight the necessity of gender and type-of-beverage specific approaches.

Successful mandible rehabilitation of lower incisors with one-piece implants.

IntroductionThe popularity of one-piece implants has increased considerably among patients and dentists. The advantages of one-piece immediate loading are to reduce the number of interventions. These parameters can be better controlled with a one-piece implant.MethodsWe considered 21 patients with one-piece implants inserted in mandible for this retrospective study. Inclusion criteria were: good oral hygiene, absence of lesions of the oral mucosa, no smoking or smoking less than 20 cigarettes a day, drinking less than two glasses of wine a day, good general health and no pregnancy.ResultsWe enrolled 21 (12 women and 9 men) patients in this retrospective study. The mean follow-up was 1 year. A total of 84 one-piece implants were inserted in mandible to replace 42 lower first and 42 second incisors. The diameter of the implants was 3.0mm in all fixtures. The length of the implants was equal to or longer than 12mm in 44 and 40 fixtures respectively. Of these, 48 were inserted in women and 36 in men (age range 33 to 67; mean age 58.3 years).ConclusionsThere is no difference between the survival rates of one-piece immediate loading implants and two-piece implants and delayed loading. In conclusion, a one-piece immediate loading implant is a reliable device for mandible rehabilitation.

Nancy Kishlar Mello.

Nancy Kishlar Mello.