Folksy wisdom is always interesting, but rarely true. If you get a cold, should you starve it or feed it to get through it? Depends on who you are talking to. What about going for a dip after eating? Should you wait an hour? Nope, studies found it makes no difference.

In some cases, the rumor or rule of thumb has some basis in fact. Red wine, for instance, has often been touted as preventing certain forms of cancer. The basis for this has often been the country of France, where cancer rates are low and red wine is a favorite beverage.

As with many rumored situations, the issue of red wine and its preventative properties has been seeing some medical research. This research has resulted in some interesting findings. Red wine does, in fact, help prevent certain cancers.

Unlike white wine, red wine is packed full with certain chemicals that are anti-oxidants. These biological components are loosely referred to as polyphenols. Within this catch-all phrase are catechins, resveratrol and other anti-oxidants.

It is important to understand white wine offers little preventative assistance. Polyphenols are located in the seeds and skin of grapes. These are used in the production of red wine, but not white wine, or at least not in significant amounts.

Polyphenols are important to your health because they protect cells. As an anti-oxidant, a polyphenol will block the damaging impact of free radicals. Free radicals can mutate the cells, their DNA and so on. This is one way cancer is believed to arise.

Red wine also contains high levels of resveratrol. Resveratrol is an interesting polyphenol. It is used by plants to defend themselves against disease. Resveratrol has been found to significantly inhibit cancerous tumor growth in animals.

It is important to understand all of these findings are preliminary results. While things look good, not enough studies have been conducted or even finished. Nonetheless, the few definitive findings are impressive.

When it comes to cancer and men, problems of the prostate are common. Well, drinking red wine may be the answer. Studies have shown that drinking a glass a day can cut the risk of this aggressive cancer by 50 percent. That is pretty amazing.

So, is red wine the cure-all for cancer? Probably not. Further tests will flesh out the details, but there is no denying that a glass of red wine a day will help fight come forms of cancer.