THE RESVERATROL STORY

We would all like to be as healthy and disease free as we can. And most of us would like to live longer if we could, and we would like to do so with heightened levels of physical endurance. It now appears that this might be possible without any significant change in lifestyle.

Experiments dating back to the 1930’s have shown that feeding laboratory animals about 30% fewer calories than normal while still getting adequate amounts of vitamins and nutrients can dramatically increase their lifespan. This is called caloric restriction or CR. Lab mice have lived for 4 years beyond their normal life expectancy in this situation; an increase of 50 percent. And along with life extension come other benefits. One is better health and the other is that age related diseases may be stopped in their tracks.

Several thousand people are now on calorie restricted diets in the United States. Researchers studying the dieters reported they had better functioning hearts, lower levels of LDL, the so-called bad cholesterol; higher levels of HDL, the so-called good cholesterol, virtually no arterial blockage and remarkably low blood pressure than similar subjects on regular diets.[1]

It appears that the calorie restrictive diet influences the molecular pathways likely to be involved in a progression of diseases such as Alzheimer’s, cardiovascular, Parkinson’s and cancer. Researchers studying these dietary effects on humans went so far last year as to claim that calorie restriction might be more effective than exercise in the prevention of age related diseases.[2]

So here’s the dilemma. We all want to live longer and healthier and it looks like restricting our caloric intake would help us get there, but the problem for most of us is that we lack the discipline and enjoy eating too much to practice it.

Well it now appears that we might be able to get the same benefits of the caloric restrictive diet without actually having to starve ourselves. How is this possible? Last November, researchers at the Harvard Medical School and the National Institute on Aging reported that a molecule called resveratrol that is found in the skin of red grapes and hence in red wine had offset the negative effects of a high caloric diet and increased the lifespan of mice.[3] For years red wine has been linked to numerous health benefits. The reason appears to be that it contains resveratrol. Resveratrol seems to mimic the beneficial effects of eating less without the hassle of dieting. The study, published in Nature (November ‘06) shows that mammals treated with resveratrol could get the good effects of cutting calories without actually doing it.[4]

Other experiments involving resveratrol have found that the life span of yeast could be extended by up to 60 percent when treated with the molecule. The same effect has been replicated in worms, flies and fish. In the case of the mice, resveratrol increased insulin levels while decreasing glucose levels, resulting in healthier liver and heart tissue when compared with mice that did not receive the treatment.[5]

These findings have triggered excitement among scientists studying aging. They believe resveratrol works by increasing the activity level of a gene called SIRT1. SIRT1 is the anti-aging gene. It is present in all complex life forms on the planet. It protects cells against damage and the ravages of everyday living. It reduces the development of new fat cells and increases the use of fat within existing fat cells. This is an evolutionary adaptation dating back several million years ago to ancient man. It worked as a survival mechanism when food supplies were uneven by enabling our bodies to cope with short-term famine by increasing the burning of body fat.[6]

One obvious effect of this metabolic change is weight loss. It might also prevent several age related diseases and increase longevity. And it might explain the “French Paradox”, the puzzling fact that the French eat a fattier diet than North Americans, but exhibit a lower incidence of heart disease because of their consumption of red wine.[7]

Studies by researchers all over the world have come up with positive results with resveratrol and many possible indications for its usefulness. Dr. David Sinclair at Harvard Medical School is credited with much of the groundbreaking research involving resveratrol. In a November 2006 interview on Fox News, Dr. Sinclair stated that “If we’re right about this, it would mean you could have the benefit of restricting calories without having to feel hungry. It’s the Holy Grail of aging research.”

A couple of years ago, Dr. Sinclair, together with a group of investors, founded a company in Cambridge, Massachusetts called Sirtris Pharmaceuticals to develop medicines that function like resveratrol in treating diseases like diabetes. But resveratrol-based pharmaceuticals are still years away.

In the meantime, Dr. Sinclair is so convinced in the anti-aging properties of resveratrol that he has been taking it for the past three years. His wife, his parents, and “half-my lab” are also taking resveratrol, he’s stated. “Personally, I’ll continue to take it and wait for scientists to tell us in 50 years that it works.”[8]

“Several other researchers on aging said the results have tempted them to start using the supplements as well. “I’m usually a very cautious person,” said Cynthia Kenyon a biochemist studying aging at the University of California at San Francisco, “But I’m seriously thinking of taking resveratrol myself. It seems pretty wonderful.” Stephen L. Helfand, who studies the molecular genetics of aging at Brown University, said “I actually told my mother she should take it. I even went out and got her some.”[9] Johan Auwerx at the Institute of Genetics and Molecular and Cell Biology in Illkirch, France takes 40 mg. per day. He is the co-author and publisher of an online article about resveratrol in the journal Cell in November 2006.[10] In an interview subsequent to this article being published, Dr. Auwerx is credited with saying “ Resveratrol makes you look like a trained athlete without the training.”

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.