Potential harmful levels of metal ions have been found in many wines being sold on the market even as you read this.

Researchers analyzed levels of metals in wines from 16 different countries in Europe, South America, and the Middle East and found that only those of Argentina, Brazil and Italy were free of the dangerous metals.

Professor Declan Naughton along with Doctor Andrea Petróczi, both of London's Kingston University, conducted the analysis using a formula from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to estimate the health risks associated with long term exposure to pollutants.

While not testing the wines themselves, the team instead calculated the target hazard quotients (THQ) based on data published in scientific journals.

Data on the heavy metal content of U.S. produced wine isn't gathered, so these wines were left out of the analysis. The Target Hazard Quotient (THQ) is an indication or risk based on the upper range of known safe limits of exposure to various chemicals. Any reading below 1.0 is considered safe.

What was startling to the team conducting the analysis was that THQ values of most wines were way over 1.0. Typical wines were found to have a THQ that ranged from a low of 50 to a high of 200, with the values for both red and white being equally high. By comparison, THQs that have sounded alarms when it comes to heavy metals in seafood are usually between 1 and 5.

Professor Naughton said, "These values are concerning, in that they are mainly above the THQ value of 1.0. Excess intake of metal ions is credited with pathological events such as Parkinson's disease. In addition to neurological problems, these ions are also believed to enhance oxidative damage, a key component of chronic inflammatory disease which is a suggested initiator of cancer."

So if you drink a glass or two of wine a day, over the course of a lifetime you've been unknowingly taking in chemicals like vanadium, copper and manganese; as well as zinc, nickel, chromium and lead. What's more, some 30 other metal ions were found in the wines, but THQ's couldn't be calculated because the safe level of exposure to these substances remains unknown.

Frustrating since beyond simple enjoyment... many of us were choosing red wine for all those protective antioxidants.

Now we're left to wonder... are the antioxidants stripped of their powers by pro-oxidant heavy metals?

Of special concern to behavioral neurotoxicologist Bernard Weiss, PhD, a professor of environmental medicine at the University of Rochester in New York, is the inclusion of manganese on the list of heavy metals in wines. Not any part of the Naughton/Petróczi work, he notes that this substance in the brain has been linked to Parkinson's disease.

Weiss is quick to point out, "Any time you see numbers like they have in this study, you begin to scratch your head and wonder about the effects over a long period of ingestion: Not one glass of wine last Tuesday, but a glass a day over a lifetime."

Your best bet is to be an informed consumer. While wine from Argentina, Brazil and Italy was found to be heavy metal free, there are twelve other wine producing countries who offer some serious contenders for most metal laden drink. Wines from Hungary and Slovakia had potential THQ values in excess of 350. Close on the heels of these, wine from France, Austria, Spain, Germany and Portugal - some of the largest importers of wine to the U.S. market - had potential THQ values up over 100. Values for North American wines remain unknown.

Professor Naughton suggests labeling wines with the amount of heavy metals inside, just as the alcohol content is listed on the label, so buyers are able to make an informed choice. In that way they can enjoy the pleasure and benefits of red wine without the risks that heavy metals bring.