Study finds champagne can lower risk of sudden cardiac arrest - Health

May 29, 2025

Gimme 20ccs of Bolli, stat!

Once you reach a certain age, the ominous potential risk of heart problems suddenly starts to loom a little larger. You begin to pay a little more attention to eating healthy foods and saying no to unhealthy ones, cutting back on alcohol and increasing your activity levels.

You also always perk up when a new study comes out that’s discovered a way to protect your heart by doing something fun for a change.

This is just the case with a recent study published in the Canadian Journal of Cardiology, which has found that drinking Champagne can help to reduce your risk of sudden cardiac arrest (SCA). Thanks guys, I needed a boost today.

Champagne bottle — Sudden cardiac arrest is a leading cause of death in Australia.

Is a sudden cardiac arrest the same as a heart attack?

No, a sudden cardiac arrest is not the same as a heart attack. An SCA is the sudden and complete loss of cardiac function – the heart stops beating due to a malfunction with the electrical system that keeps the heart pumping blood around your brain and body. A heart attack occurs when blood flow to the heart is reduced, usually due to a blocked artery.

Champagne bottles — Bubbles really do make everything better.

How does Champagne reduce the risk of sudden cardiac arrest?

In the study, researchers from Fudan University in China identified 56 non-clinical risk factors for SCA, which encompassed everything from stress and socioeconomic status to environment, education and lifestyle. In fact, they found that lifestyle factors appear to contribute significantly to the risk of SCA. Along with maintaining a healthy weight and a positive mood and keeping your blood pressure under control, the researchers also found that higher consumption of Champagne or white wine and increased fruit intake “may serve as important protective factors”.

In an editorial accompanying the study, Nicholas Grubic from the University of Toronto, Canada, and Dr Dakota Gustafson from Queen’s University, Canada, said, “One of the study’s most intriguing findings is the cardioprotective effect associated with Champagne and white wine consumption, questioning longheld assumptions about the specificity of red wine’s cardioprotective properties. Research on the underlying mechanisms remains unclear, but these findings reinforce the idea that the benefits of moderate alcohol consumption may be more complex than previously assumed.”

In other words, they don’t know why, but it seems to work. Good enough for us! But put down that jeroboam – the key phrase here is “moderate alcohol consumption”. So raise a toast to a happier and healthier you with a choice glass of bubbles this weekend.