Red wine and your health: Facts and myths

For cancer prevention, no alcohol is best

First things first: for cancer prevention, it’s best not to drink any type of alcohol. If you choose to drink, be aware of the risks, aim to drink less often and have fewer drinks.

This guidance also extends to people in cancer treatment. If you have any questions about your alcohol consumption during treatment, Tilton recommends talking to your care team for personalized support. MD Anderson patients can also request support from a clinical dietitian.

Here’s why alcohol increases cancer risk

Drinking alcohol increases your risk for these cancers:

• Breast cancer in females
• Colorectal cancer
• Esophageal cancer
• Liver cancer
• Oral cancer
• Stomach cancer
• Throat cancer

Curious why alcohol is linked to cancer risk? Here are a few expert-backed explanations.

Ethanol becomes acetaldehyde: When your body breaks down the ethanol in alcohol, it forms a cancer-causing substance called acetaldehyde. This process happens regardless of what type of alcohol you drink. So, whether you’re drinking a cocktail or sipping a glass of red wine, the same process occurs in your body.

RELATED: Does alcohol cause cancer?

Hormonal changes: Alcohol can alter hormone levels, increasing hormones such as estrogen and insulin. This can result in more cell division. 

Increased risks from drinking and smoking: Drinking alcohol and smoking might increase your cancer risk more than either habit alone. This is because alcohol can damage the cells in your mouth and throat, making it easier for them to be affected by other carcinogens. 

Cell damage: Drinking alcohol causes oxidative stress, which damages DNA, proteins and cells.

Inflammation: Over time, drinking alcohol can damage cells and cause long-term inflammation.

Excess calories lead to weight gain: The standard serving size for a wine with 12% alcohol is 5 ounces. A 5-ounce serving of red wine contains 125 calories, according to the Department of Agriculture. With most wine glasses designed to hold a lot more than five ounces, it can be easy to overdo it. Eating and drinking more calories than your body burns can lead to weight gain. Excess body weight increases your risk of more than 10 cancers. 

The health risks of drinking top any red wine health benefits

Red wine is made by crushing red grapes, including their skin. The skin stays in contact with the wine through the fermentation process, Tilton explains. That skin contact gives red wine its namesake color and polyphenol content. 

Red wine’s health benefits are often attributed to these polyphenols, a type of antioxidant or phytonutrient. They are anti-inflammatory and protect cells from free radical damage, which can lead to carcinogenesis, or the forming of cancer, Tilton explains.

There are many types of polyphenols found in red wine, including resveratrol. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) writes that resveratrol “has been investigated for many possible health effects, including cancer prevention.” However, it goes on to reference a 2025 meta-analysis, which found red wine doesn’t have benefits over white wine when it comes to cancer risk. Another CDC webpage states it more bluntly: “There is no evidence that drinking red wine reduces the risk of cancer.”

While Tilton notes that some past studies found a moderate correlation between red wine intake and reduced risk for certain cancers, we know that alcohol increases the risk for other types of cancer. Ultimately, this means research on human consumption of red wine is considered inconclusive, she says.

Another problem with trying to decrease your cancer risk by drinking red wine? It isn’t clear how much red wine you’d need to drink to see health benefits from polyphenols. Whether it’s possible to detangle those health benefits from alcohol's known cancer risk is a whole other question.

“It likely requires a high enough alcohol intake that it would nullify a protective effect,” Tilton says. 

Pouring yourself a glass of red wine for its potential heart health benefits might not be in your best interest either. The National Library of Medicine writes, “There are much more effective ways to prevent heart disease” than drinking alcohol.

Among their suggestions are managing your blood pressure and cholesterol, as well as tried and true tips that MD Anderson also recommends for cancer prevention: maintaining a healthy weight, eating healthy foods, getting enough exercise and avoiding tobacco and smoking.

Add antioxidants to your diet via food, not red wine

Luckily, drinking red wine isn’t the only way to get polyphenols. Rather than relying on red wine, Tilton recommends getting them through the foods you eat.

You can also get a variety of other antioxidants by eating a healthy diet with meals rich in whole grains, vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts and seeds. 

Examples of foods that contain polyphenols include:

• Fruits
  • Apples
  • Berries
  • Cherries
  • Red grapes
  • Pomegranates
• Vegetables
  • Artichokes
  • Broccoli
  • Olives
  • Onions
  • Spinach
• Nuts and seeds
  • Almonds
  • Flaxseed
  • Hazelnuts
  • Sesame seeds
  • Walnuts
• Other
  • Coffee
  • Cloves
  • Cinnamon
  • Dark chocolate
  • Tea

The bottom line? “I would generally advise against drinking alcohol for health benefits,” Tilton says.

Request an appointment at MD Anderson online or call 1-877-632-6789.