Red wine ingredient 'wards off age effects'
A compound found in red wine could ward off effects of ageing, study says
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Friday, 04, Jul 2008 08:09
An ingredient found in wine could help to slow age-related deterioration of the heart, bones, eyes and muscle, a new study suggests.
In tests on mice US researchers found that the benefits of the compound, named resveratrol, come without necessarily extending the animals' lifespan.
Their study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism, also revealed evidence that resveratrol mimics the beneficial effects of eating fewer calories.
The investigators compared mice fed a standard diet, a high-calorie diet, or an every-other-day feeding regimen with or without high- or low-dose resveratrol.
Total cholesterol was significantly reduced in 22-month-old non-obese mice after ten months of resveratrol treatment and the aortas (sections of the hearts) of 18-month-old obese and non-obese mice treated with resveratrol functioned significantly better than untreated mice.
Resveratrol also moderated inflammation in the heart, improved bone and eye health and coordination.
"I was most surprised by how broad the effects were in the mice," said Dr David Sinclair of Harvard Medical School.
"Usually, you focus on slowing down or ameliorating one disease at a time. In this case, resveratrol influences a whole series of seemingly unrelated diseases associated with ageing."
The researchers say they still have much to learn before resveratrol can be recommended for human use.
Basic questions of safety and biological effect in humans remain to be studied experimentally.
"We are learning a great deal about how resveratrol affects the health and survival of mammals," said Dr Sinclair.
"Continued study of…. resveratrol may eventually point the way to new medicines to treat diseases of ageing."