Can Resveratrol Keep You Health And Extend Your Life?

Say the word resveratrol and many begin to think "magic potion". Since the focus on the health benefits of wine started a few years ago, scientists and experts have been searching for the answer to why. Why is wine good for us? or so it seems. And what is it about wine that makes it a health benefit?

Some of those experts believe that they have the answer. Resveratrol. They see it as a cancer-fighting, common-cold-preventing, dementia-delaing, life-extending fountain of youth. Others are more skeptical, thinking that its virtues have been overstated. And, when it comes to wine, they believe that the health benefits come from all its substances working in concert, not just one component.

So, What is It?

In the 1960s the Japanese isolated this substance from a plant known as knotweed. Studies of it have been done in lab rats, where they have obtained good results. These studies have found cardiovascular benefits, as well as positive effects in diabetes, cancer, and other diseases.

But results have not always translated well to humans. The doses that rats have been given are very high, compared to those received by subjects in human trials. That has not stopped proponents from selling it as a nutritional supplement.

It is present in grape skins and seed, thus the association with red wine; but it also present in blueberries, peanuts, and many other foods.

While it may be true that it is the key to wine and health, most probably the benefits of drinking wine have more to do with the many substances that make up this complex beverage. Certainly health benefits have been found in other alcoholic beverages, not just wine.

But wine, especially red wine, seems to have the great combination of alcohol, antioxidants, flavonoids; and, yes, resveratrol.

Many doctors and health professionals have hesitated to encourage people to drink wine for health reasons, fearing that the public will overdo it. they know that high alcohol consumption has been a scourge, and has killed may and ruined lives.

But more and more doctors are now willing to say that yes, a glass of wine with dinner may very well be good for us.

An article written by the Mayo Clinic cautiously touts the benefits of red wine for health purposes.

While the research continues into the benefits of resveratrol, it seems clear that drinking wine in moderation is good for us.

The best course of action is to talk with your physician and follow her or his advise. Your doctor know your health history better than anyone else. If the answer is yes, then by all means include

Wine As Part of Your Healthy Life

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