Those who drink between two and seven small glasses of wine per week are on average 32 per cent less likely to develop depression, researchers found.

Heavy drinking has been repeatedly linked to mental health problems as well as physical illness, but some studies have already suggested that a moderate alcohol intake could be healthy.

Studies have suggested that a regular and modest wine intake could lower the risk of coronary heart disease, and experts believe there could be a similar benefit for depression because the conditions have some of the same mechanisms.

Non-alcoholic compounds in wine such as resveratrol, which have been linked to physical health, are also thought to have a protective effect on some regions of the brain.