In the last five y ears there has been a significant increase in the consumption of red wine. During this same period, there have been several major news reports about the beneficial long-term effects on health that certain antioxidants in red wine can provide. Thus, the increase in red wine consumption can be directly attributed to consumers’ recognition of the beneficial effects of antioxidants.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the explanation above?
(A) Sales of other alcoholic beverages have not increased in the last five years.
(B) On average, people consume about 10 percent more red wine than they did five years ago.
(C) The health benefits of red wine are usually not noticeable for several years.
(D) The consumption of grape juice and other antioxidant-rich products has also increased in the last five years.
(E) Red wine prices have decreased significantly in the last five years, while the prices of other alcoholic beverages have risen steadily .
Yo, so apparently red wine consumption has gone up in the last five years because people are hip to the health benefits of antioxidants in the wine, according to this argument. But what could seriously mess up that explanation? Well, if red wine prices have gone down while other alcoholic drinks have gone up in price, people might just be choosing red wine 'cause it's cheaper. And that's exactly what answer choice E says.