Now, the words sweet and type 2 diabetes don’t usually go well together. Sweet things spike blood sugar and seriously worsen type 2 diabetes.

But one sweet drink that most people love has recently been proven to actually lower blood sugar level and improve type 2 diabetes.

Red wine has been making headlines again, recently, but this time it’s not about its star-power antioxidant or blood pressure-lowering or cholesterol-lowering effects. This news is about the ability of red wine to lower your blood sugar levels.

Studies have shown that moderate red wine consumption can help your body clear glucose out of your bloodstream 43% faster and reduce your risk for type 2 diabetes by as much as 30%.

However, if red wine sounds like your idea of a good way to manage your blood sugar levels there are a number of prerequisites you’ll need to satisfy.

Slow Metabolizers

It is said that alcohol raises blood sugar levels because it’s broken down in a similar fashion to sugar. However, a study of diabetics who never drink alcohol agreed to drink wine with dinner for two years found the opposite, for many participants.

When they crunched the numbers, researchers found that those who showed improved blood sugar control also metabolized, or, broke the alcohol down, more slowly.

The advantage of being a slow metabolizer is that you release the alcohol into your bloodstream more slowly, resulting in lower blood sugar spikes. As a result, fasting blood glucose, hemoglobin A1c levels (which reflect blood sugar levels over the past 4 months) and insulin resistance were all lower in the slow metabolizers.

Who are the members of the slow metabolizer club?

Some ethnic groups, particularly Asians, are born with a genetic mutation that impairs their ability to break down alcohol. Slow metabolizers are also people with low estrogen levels, including men and women past menopause. Additionally, older people may fall into this category because of decreased production of the enzyme needed to metabolize alcohol.

Is it the Alcohol or the Grapes?

In an effort to determine whether it’s the alcohol or the grapes themselves, or a combination of the two, researchers at the University of Barcelona gave a group of men either red wine, dealcoholized red wine, or gin every day for 4 weeks.

What they saw was that all three lowered fasting blood sugar levels but only red wine and dealcoholized red wine lowered insulin levels. This implies that something in red grapes contributes to the blood sugar benefits.

That thing might be the antioxidants contained in red wine. Since the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas are lacking in two of the major antioxidants the body uses to protect itself, the antioxidant theory makes good sense.

By virtue of its antioxidant prowess, wine also lowers levels of inflammation-promoting molecules that have been linked to insulin resistance and diabetes. When wine is compared to other forms of alcohol for reducing risk of Type 2 diabetes it comes out ahead of beer and spirits.

When to “Say When”

So, how much red wine is enough? Most studies are finding that one or two glasses of red per day is the just-right amount to drink on a regular basis to derive the greatest blood sugar-balancing benefits. Too little wine, such as occasional versus regular drinking, might not provide blood sugar-lowering benefits at all, while too much alcohol can raise your blood sugar levels. And remember that drinking the same amount of non-alcohol wine or grape juice maybe just as effective.

But wine may not always be the best idea for type 2 diabetics, here is a 3-step strategy that thousands of readers have used to completely rid themselves of type 2 diabetes – without wine…