So from reading the title, you might think we’ve gone a bit crazy with our love of wine. While we do love wine, and all of its benefits, we aren’t crazy on this one. Resveralife did some research to discover whether the luxurious spa treatment known as the wine bath is indeed beneficial for your health and skin.
Red Wine
By now you know that the antioxidants in red wine provide your body with some health benefits. One of the most talked about (and our favorite!) antioxidant found in red wine is resveratrol. The resveratrol found in red wine helps lower your LDL (bad cholesterol) levels, prevents damage to you blood vessels and works to prevent blood clots.
So why red wine? Resveratrol is found in the skin of all grapes, so there is an amount in white or blush wines. However, because the grapes are fermented longer with the skins on, there is a higher level of resveratrol in red wine.
Why a Wine Bath?
Perhaps you’ve joked before about how you would bathe in wine if you could, and now you can. But why would you want to? The practice of bathing in wine is known as vinotherapy and is said to boost circulation while healing and helping the body recovery from stress. Professional basketball player, Amar’e Stoudermire of the New York Knicks, is pretty outspoken about how beneficial vinotherapy, or red wine baths, have been for him. He gets vinotherapy at a spa in New York City weekly with a very hot red wine bath, with the red wine being diluted by water. Stoudmermire says he will continue to receive treatments because his entire body, in particular his legs, feel completely rejuvenated after soaking in the bath.
Should You Try a Wine Bath?
Only if you really, really want to. While it is entirely possible that a red wine bath helps with feelings of rejuvenation and renewed health, you are more likely to receive the antioxidant benefits by just drinking a glass of your favorite red wine. Many of the beneficial ingredients in red wine are known as phenolic compounds. Phenolic compounds do provide great health benefits, but they do not penetrate the skin well.
If that’s the case, then why bother using any skin care containing phenolic antioxidant compounds? Phenolic compounds can penetrate the skin, but require a bit of time to do so. Chances are a red wine bath lasts about 30 minutes maximum, but when you put on a well formulated day cream or serum, you give the phenolic compounds time to fully penetrate and sink into the skin.
Red wine baths are certainly intriguing and may be a luxurious way to indulge yourself. However, they are more about relaxing than providing serious skin care or health benefits. To really experience the benefits of resveratrol and the other antioxidants present in red wine, it is best to use superior quality skin care products, or take your daily dose in the form of our capsules. And don’t forget, you can always enjoy a glass of red wine!
