Scientists are of the opinion that red wine boosts the brain's defenses against stroke damage to brain cells.

However, experts also reveal that while alcohol may safeguard against one kind of stroke, even a small amounts has the propensity of increasing the risk of some other kind of stroke.

Dailymail.co.uk quoted a scientist as saying, “We know that small amounts of alcohol seem to help protect against ischaemic strokes, which is a clot in the brain. Alcohol may help to thin the blood and reduce the risk of clots forming. We recommend that people drink alcohol in moderation”.

The research, which was conducted at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, evinces that resveratrol augments the levels of a defensive enzyme called heme oxygenase. When a stroke afflicts a person, the enzyme comes into play and protects the oxygen starved cells from dying.

Researchers opine that a 'wonder ingredient' in the wine can reduce the damage done by a blood clot in the brain. Researcher Sylvain Dore also states that small quantity of resveratrol, which is present in raspberries, blueberries, cranberries and peanuts, could safeguard the brain cells.