Any hardworking gal knows that kicking back with a girlfriend and a glass of red wine is a fabulous way to de-stress. Your red-wine habit also happens to come with some happy health benefits, such as protecting your ticker and even slimming your waistline. Check out these eight reasons why winding down with a glass of vino is a good call all around. MORE: 9 Very Best Solutions To Solve Your Snoring (Prevention Premium) 1. Lower your cholesterol High-fiber Tempranillo red grapes—which are used to make certain red wines, like Rioja—may actually have a significant effect on cholesterol levels, according to a study from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain. Healthy study participants who consumed the same grape supplement found in red wine saw their LDL, or "bad cholesterol," levels decrease by 9% among healthy. Participants with high cholesterol experienced a drop of 12%. What's the big deal? Excess LDL ends up getting deposited in arterial walls and forming plaque, which causes arteries to stiffen and blood pressure to rise, ultimately leading to heart attacks, says Arthur Agatson, MD, an associate professor of medicine at the University of Miami and author of The South Beach Heart Program.

MORE: 12 Foods That Lower Cholesterol Naturally 2. Protect your heart On top of lowering bad cholesterol, polyphenols—the antioxidants in red wine—can help keep blood vessels flexible and reduce the risk of unwanted clotting, says John Folts, PhD, a professor of cardiovascular medicine and nutrition at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. "They're nearly as effective as aspirin," says Folts. But be careful: Chronic heavy drinking damages the heart, so, as with most things, moderation is key. (If you prefer an aspirin to protect your ticker, be sure to follow these 3 aspirin safety tips.) MORE: 28 Days To A Healthier Heart 3. Control blood sugar The skin of red grapes—a rich source of red wine's natural compound resveratrol—may actually help diabetics regulate their blood sugar, finds recent research published in the journal Nutrition. Study participants who took a 250 mg resveratrol supplement once a day for three months had lower blood glucose levels than those who didn't take the pill.

Plus, resveratrol-takers also had significant decreases in total cholesterol and systolic blood pressure. best way to save a bottle of wineResearchers suspect that resveratrol may help stimulate insulin secretion or activate a protein that helps regulate glucose and insulin sensitivity.red spots all over my arms 4. Boost your brainbest red wines spain Resveratrol may also be the key to keeping your memory sharp, says Philippe Marambaud, PhD, a senior research scientist at New York's Litwin-Zucker Research Center for the Study of Alzheimer's Disease and Memory Disorders. wine bar names ideasThe compound has been shown to hamper the formation of beta-amyloid protein, a key ingredient in the plaque found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's. best 5 dollar red wine

Marambaud suggests flexing your noodle by doing crossword puzzles and brain teasers for an hour then cooling down with a glass of wine. best sweet wine for christmasNew to brain teasers? We've got you covered with 7 Brain Games That Make You Smarter. 5. Fight off a cold If you hate getting sick (and who doesn't?), the antioxidants in red wine may help keep you healthy. A 2010 study in the American Journal of Epidemiology found that among 4,000 faculty members at five Spanish universities, those who drank more than 14 weekly glasses of wine for a year were 40% less likely to come down with a common cold. According to the National Institutes of Health, antioxidants are believed to fight infection and protect cells against the effects of free radicals, which may play role in cancer and other diseases.They may also lower sex hormone levels to protect against breast cancer, says a study from Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. 

(Stay up to date on the latest breast cancer news with our Breast Cancer Center.) According to researchers at the University of Virginia, the resveratrol you get from drinking one glass of red wine three or four times a week may be enough to starve any nascent cancer cells. The scientists dosed human cancer cells with resveratrol and found that the compound inhibited the key action of a cancer-feeding protein. MORE: The Ultimate Anti-Cancer Diet Clearly, resveratrol is a bit of a limelight hog when it comes to the healthful compounds in vino. But research in the Journal of Biological Chemistry suggests piceatannol, the chemical compound our bodies convert from resveratrol, deserves some credit. This compound was shown to actually prevent the growth of fat cells in a series of lab tests. Researchers say that piceatannol binds to the insulin receptors of fat cells, essentially blocking the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow. 8. Jazz up dinner

All Articles Fitness Nutrition Four Health Benefits of Red Wine Red wine has well known health benefits. However, drinking any alcoholic beverage in excess can lead to alcoholism and the serious health problems associated with it, so limit your red wine consumption to no more than 24 ounces per day. Use FitDay to keep track of the calories you're eating and make sure that you get adequate nutrition on the road to weight loss as you enjoy the following benefits of an occasional glass of wine. 1) Red Wine is Good for Your Heart Red wine contains resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant compound. Resveratrol also protects your heart and arteries against the effects of saturated fat in your diet, so drinking one or two glasses of red wine a day can help protect your heart and prevent cardiovascular disease. The flavonoids and sapponins in red wine also help to protect your heart against cardiovascular disease. The alcohol in red wine, when consumed in moderation, raises your levels of "good" HDL cholesterol, helps prevent the formation of blood clots and can help to protect your arteries from the damage caused by "bad" LDL cholesterol.

2) Red Wine Contains Antioxidants In addition to resveratrol, red wine contains a number of other antioxidants, which can slow the signs of aging and prevent a number of degenerative illnesses like type 2 diabetes. Drinking one or two glasses of red wine each day can help protect you from many of the diseases of the elderly, such as osteoporosis. 3) Red Wine Prevents Cancer Mounting evidence suggests that drinking red wine in moderation can help prevent cancer. The many antioxidants in red wine can help prevent the oxidative damage responsible for the process of aging and for many degenerative conditions like Alzheimer's, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Guercetin, one of the many antioxidants in red wine, may help prevent lung cancer. Research has shown that resveratrol, the same red wine antioxidant that helps protect your heart, can also kill cancerous cells. Scientists have found that resveratrol, when used in conjunction with radiation therapy, can penetrate cancerous cells and induce apoptosis.