Influence of Wine on Bone Mineral Density

Abstract

Background: Considering the increasing interest in strategies to prevent osteoporosis and other bone-related conditions, it is relevant to critically assess the existing evidence on the potential benefits of phenolic compounds in wine on bone metabolism. Objectives: This integrative review aims to evaluate clinical and animal studies investigating the influence of wine consumption on bone mineral density (BMD). Methods: The search was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Embase databases until April 2025. The key question was: "Does wine consumption influence BMD?". Results: After searching the identified databases, 108 studies were screened, and 7 were included in the final analysis. Conclusions: This review suggests a possible association between light to moderate wine consumption and favorable effects on BMD, particularly in the spine and femoral neck. However, these findings should be interpreted cautiously due to the predominance of observational studies. Future RCTs and systematic reviews must clarify wine's potential role in bone health and explore non-alcoholic or low-alcohol wine alternatives with similar polyphenol content.

Keywords: alcohol consumption; alcohol intake; antioxidants; bone density; bone regeneration; bone repair; osteoporosis; polyphenols; wine.

Figure 1

Molecular mechanisms related to wine phenolics on the skeletal system. Created with https://www.biorender.com/. Abbreviations: ERK 1/2: extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2; p38 MAPK: p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase; Wnt: Wnt signaling pathway; BMP-2: bone morphogenetic protein 2; RANKL: receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand; ROS: reactive oxygen species; TNF–α: tumor necrosis factor alpha; IL–6: interleukin 6.

Figure 2

PRISMA flow diagram for the search strategy and selection process for included studies.