Based on the findings of a recent study,, the consumption of a daily dose of of alcohol-free wine may be connected to increasing skin elasticity in middle-aged women.

The results of a new study show that women who consumed two glasses of dealcoholic Muscadine wine daily had “significant improvements in the elasticity and water retention of their skin” compared to women who took the placebo.

Researchers who conducted the said that it was the first time researchers had investigated the impact of drinking alcohol-free wine on skin health in a controlled clinical trial.

According to the team of researchers that the positive effects could be due to chemical compounds known as polyphenols which are naturally found in numerous plants.

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“Muscadine grapes have been found to have a unique polyphenolic profile in comparison to other red wine varieties,” said Lindsey Christman, Ph.D., who carried out the research in collaboration with Liwei Gu, Ph.D., Professor of Food Chemistry and Functional Foods within the University of Florida.

“Our study suggests that muscadine wine polyphenols have potential to improve skin conditions, specifically elasticity and transepidermal water loss, in middle aged and older women.”

Muscadine grapes are widely used to make wine. They are indigenous to the Southeastern United States.

To conduct this study, scientists enlisted 17 women aged 40-67. They randomly divided them into two groups: dealcoholized wine or a drink with a taste that “looked and tasted similar but did not contain polyphenols.” The participants were able to consume 300 milliliters (or around 10 ounces – equivalent to 2 glasses) of their chosen beverage every day over six weeks. Participants then took a break of three weeks before switching to the other drink for six weeks.

Researchers assessed the skin conditions of participants and indicators of oxidative stress and inflammation at the beginning of the study and after the six-week time. The research team concluded that consuming muscadine wine dramatically increased skin elasticity (a loss of elasticity causes the skin to lose its elasticity as you age).

In addition, the wine was related to an increase in the amount of water lost on the skin’s surface. This indicates that the skin’s surface provides a more substantial injury barrier injury.

Researchers found that they didn’t notice any significant differences in the appearance of wrinkles on the skin. However, Participants reported “improvements in skin smoothness and less evidence of inflammation and oxidative stress compared to baseline, but there was not a significant difference in these factors between dealcoholized muscadine wine and the placebo.”

“This cross-over research showed that six weeks of alcohol-free consumption of muscadine wine resulted in improvements in certain skin-related parameters associated with aging, including the elasticity of the forearms and barrier function of skin on the face when compared with the baseline condition and placebo. “This is likely due to decreases in inflammation and oxidative stress,” continued Christman.

The trial was only conducted with 17 participants. Repeating the test with a more significant and diverse sample of participants would aid in confirming and strengthening the findings in the future.

In addition, as most commercially-available muscadine wine contains alcohol, the researchers cautioned that drinking wine with alcohol may produce a different result.

“We utilized muscadine wines that were dealcoholized as we were interested in the effects of bioactive components in wine, particularly the polyphenols on skin health. Alcohol can add another factor to the study, which could make the results different. Additionally the process of dealcoholization could modify the chemical structure of the drink,” added Christman.

Christman will present his findings in NUTRITION 2023, the most prestigious annual gathering held by the American Society for Nutrition between 22 and July 25 in Boston, Massachusetts.