As a 28-year-old and highly active male, is a single glass of wine on five nights per week likely to be beneficial or detrimental to my health?

Better ways 2 live?: An occasional glass of wine is not a problem. What is a concern is starting a habit that might be difficult to break. It is also harder to self-monitor behavior when under the influence of alcohol, so that single glass of wine could lead to more. At 28 there are many more fun and interesting things to do.

In general it's fine: Assuming that you are generally healthy, that you have no substance abuse history, &that you are not using medications that should not be mixed with alcohol, a single glass of wine nightly should not hurt your health, &it may help your cholesterol profile, plus possibly it could help your social life (shared ritual and mild, useful disinhibition), &maybe, if used carefully, it aids stress management.

Impossible to say: Small amounts of alcohol have been found in some people to raise the level of good cholesterol (HDL) - one to two drinks daily in men, one in women and men over 60. However, alcohol together with aspirin and ibuprofen (which is itself not a good combo) may vastly increase chances of bleeding and other side effects. This question should be asked of your doctors. Red wine can increase migraine.