Wine

Two glasses of wine per day (some nutritionists would say "per meal," provided the glass is not an oversize brandy snifter), are of great benefit to the cardiovascular system. Wine is apparently behind "the French Paradox," that is a lot of meat eating linked with low rates of cardiovascular disease. Red wine is best, mainly because many of the beneficial compounds are found in the grape skin, and these are used in the making of red wine. Wine also boosts good HDL cholesterol, kills bacteria, and this may be the main reason why the ancients added wine to their water.