Resveratrol
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Dr OZ Talks about Resveratrol on the Oprah Winfrey Show
What is Resveratrol?
Resveratrol is a powerful antioxidant that is produced by some plants to protect against environmental stresses.
Perhaps the most notable producer of resveratrol is the grapevine, which produces large amounts of resveratrol in the skins of grapes to protect against fungal diseases and sun damage. It is therefore no suprise that wine (in particular red wine - which is fermented with grape skins) has some of the highest levels of resveratrol out of any natural food.
While it has been know for thousands of years that wine is a healthful drink (thus the old Roman saying 'In Vino Sanitas'- In wine there is health), the scientific community started taking wine's health benefits seriously after 60 Minutes reported the famous 'French Parodox' study in which people in France were less likely to die of heart attacks than Americans despite similar high fat diets. The study concluded that the relatively large amounts of red wine consumed by the French protected their hearts.
From the French Paradox study numerous other studies were launched to attempt to identify compounds responsible for red wine’s apparent health benefits. From these studies the compound that gained by far the largest amount of interest was Resveratrol. Recent studies have concluded that:
- Adding resveratrol to the diet of yeast, fruit flies, worms, and a species of fish increased their life spans up to 70%, 29%, 24%, & 50% respectively.
- Resveratrol made fat related deaths drop 31% in obese mice. The resveratrol fed obese mice also performed much better in movement and agility tests than obese mice not fed resveratrol.
- Mice fed resveratrol had 100% more endurance than mice not fed resveratrol (i.e. they were able to run twice as far on a treadmill).
- Resveratrol inhibits blood platelet aggregation that can lead to dangerous clots that can cause heart attacks and strokes.
- Resveratrol is a powerful antioxidant that can help prevent cell damage caused by free radicals (free radicals are unstable atoms caused in part by pollution, sunlight, and our bodies natural burning of fat that can lead to cancer, aging, and brain degeneration)
Where is Resveratrol found?
Resveratrol is found naturally in: red wine, grapes, blueberries, peanuts, and various other plants.
It is also found in dietary supplements including: red wine extracts, grape seed pills and extracts, and polygonum cuspidatum extracts among others.
60 Minutes on Resveratrol
Barbara Walters talks with Dr. David Sinclair of Harvard University about Resveratrol
Charlie Rose discusses Resveratrol with longevity experts
Video about Resveratrol's effect on Alzheimers Disease
Video from the Wall Street Journal shows
Resveratrol's effect on endurance.
This site is not intended to treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
