The French paradox is that despite consuming three times as much saturated fat as Americans, the French have fewer heart attacks and less obesity. The French attribute this to portion control and fresh foods, while studies suggest the chemical resveratrol in red wine may play a role.
The French paradox refers to the fact that, although the French consume three times as much saturated fat as the Americans, one-third fewer French people die of heart attacks and obesity than American people. Baffled American scientists and other health experts around the world have tried to discover the “secret” behind the French paradox. Most French people insist that the only “secret” is watching portion sizes and daily fat intake, as well as choosing fresh foods over processed foods, and they deny that there is a “French paradox.”
The French eat rich foods like cream, butter, pastries, and rich cheeses, but they also consume red wine and olive oil. Researchers have found olive oil to be a heart-healthy source of fat. However, the olive oil that the French consume does not rule out the high amounts of saturated fat that they still consume, and therefore does not adequately explain the French paradox. On the other hand, studies at Harvard Medical School have shown that a chemical in red wine called resveratrol reverses the coronary and obesity effects of a high-fat, high-calorie diet in mice.
When lab mice were given resveratrol, the mice ran twice as far on a treadmill as before and also had reduced heart rates. The mice also lived longer than the mice that had not received the resveratrol. The findings led to a marked increase in red wine sales in the United States despite the fact that the amount of resveratrol administered to the mice would be the human equivalent of drinking hundreds of glasses of wine a day. Once again, the French paradox was left unresolved.
The French tend to emphasize that they reduce their coronary risks by looking at portion sizes and the amount of fat eaten in a day. Discipline, moderation, and balance, many Frenchmen insist, are the most important health “secrets,” and they see no French paradox. Mireille Guiliano, in her 2004 best-selling book French Women Don’t Get Fat, agrees that the “secret” to heart health for French people is to eat what they want, but in moderation, and agrees that it doesn’t. There is a French paradox. Many French people are often horrified by American portion sizes.
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