Italian Cardiologists Cast Moderate Wine as Part of Healthy Aging

Italian cardiologists used a major scientific meeting in Rome this week to argue that moderate wine consumption, when part of the Mediterranean diet, should be viewed less as a tolerated indulgence and more as a cultural and dietary element that may fit within healthy aging.

The message emerged at Place 2026, short for Platform of Laboratories for Advances in Cardiac Experience, an Italian conference focused on the future of cardiology. According to WineNews, one session on longevity, titled “Mediterranean Diet: the Holy Grail,” centered in part on wine and drew unusual attention for a cardiology program.

Speakers at the event said the key distinction is not wine alone, but the difference between moderate, informed consumption and excess, which they described as the real source of health risk. The discussion framed wine within the broader Mediterranean model of eating and living, alongside physical activity, balanced meals and emotional well-being.

Franco M. Ricci, president of the Italian Sommelier Foundation and director of Bibenda, told attendees that wine has long held a place in Mediterranean tradition not simply as food or drink, but as an expression of conviviality, culture and local identity. He argued that this context is often lost when wine is discussed only through the lens of risk.

WineNews reported that Ricci said moderation and awareness are what matter most. The article said Italian cardiologists at the conference referred broadly to consumption of up to about two glasses a day as a benchmark for moderation, while stressing that excess remains the dividing line in health outcomes.

Giulio Rapetti, the songwriter known as Mogol, also took part in the session. Nearing 90, he cited regular exercise, a balanced diet that includes wine and inner calm as pillars of longevity, according to the report. His remarks were presented as personal testimony rather than clinical evidence, but they echoed the tone of the broader discussion.

Professor Leonardo Calò, director of cardiology at Rome’s Policlinico Casilino and co-president of the congress, opened the proceedings by arguing that well-being cannot be measured by calories alone. WineNews said Calò, who wrote a book on so-called super-agers titled “Living Without Age,” has devoted attention to wine in his work on longevity.

In another session, “Longevity: Myths and Certainties,” participants reportedly called for moving beyond what they described as simplistic food myths that treat fats, wine or individual nutrients as inherently harmful without considering quality, quantity and context. The same principle applied to fats, Calò said: they are not enemies in themselves, but become harmful in excess. Conference speakers extended that reasoning to wine.

The discussion does not settle a long-running international debate over alcohol and health. Public health authorities in many countries continue to warn that alcohol carries risks even at low levels of consumption, and recent research has often taken a more cautious view than older studies that linked moderate drinking with cardiovascular benefits. The Rome meeting instead reflected a position held by some Italian specialists who see moderate wine intake within the Mediterranean diet as compatible with healthy living when separated clearly from abuse.

That distinction matters for the beverage sector because it touches one of its most sensitive issues: whether wine can still be presented in public debate as part of food culture rather than only as alcohol exposure. For producers, sommeliers and hospitality businesses tied to Mediterranean tourism, messages from medical voices that emphasize moderation, context and meal-based consumption could influence how wine is discussed with consumers, even if they do not change official health guidance.

The setting also underscored how closely wine remains tied in Italy to gastronomy and tourism. By placing wine inside a conversation about longevity rather than outside it as an exception, speakers linked it to a wider lifestyle model that Italy continues to promote globally through its cuisine, regional identity and dining culture.

WineNews described the takeaway from Place 2026 as clear for people working in wine: when consumed with measure and awareness, and understood as part of a broader Mediterranean way of life rather than a shortcut to health, wine can be considered one element among many in a long and healthy life.