Red wine contains antioxidants that help prevent heart disease, protecting arteries and blood vessels. Red wine contains resveratrol, which may activate genes that slow cellular aging. However a shocking new report has revealed that 98% of American red wines contain high levels of arsenic.

It's important to note that small exposures to arsenic is normal but chronic levels is when we run into a problem. Back in March, over 28 wineries were accused of having a high level of arsenic in their wine. We see a lot of this in rice, seafood and other products. Most of us are drinking a few glasses of wine socially but if you're consuming a lot of wine per day, this could become a problem long term.

Researchers from the University of Washington examined the contents of 65 wines from America’s top four wine producing states, which are California, Washington, New York And Oregon. And here’s what they discovered: 98 percent of red wines contained arsenic levels that exceed the U.S. drinking water standards. 

While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency allows tap water to contain no more than 10 parts per billion of arsenic, the wine samples ranged from 10 to 76 parts per billion, with an average of 24 parts per billion.

One peer-reviewed study looked at the level of arsenic of American wines, the vino from Washington scored the highest, averaging 28 parts per billion. Oregon had the least amount of arsenic, averaging 13 parts per billion which is considered particularly low. 

Being that the typical adult drinks more water than wine, researchers also looked into the possible hazards from taking in arsenic from multiple sources in our diet. And this companion study concluded that adverse health effects are more likely when more than one arsenic-type food or drink is consumed.