Updated September 2009

So, what can’t it do?Reveratrol - The potential to beat cancer?

Resveratrol is the new 'wunderkind' natural compound, a phytoalexin, produced by certain fruits to defend the fruit cells from attack.

Experts already claim it can help you beat cancer - from brain tumours to breast, colon, prostate cancers and many more. Early findings also showed it helps in Dementia and Alzheimer's, heart disease and even weight loss. M.D.Anderson have done several research studies but there were claims that most studies were limited to animal studies only. All that changed in 2008 when a new study was published involving a major collaborative exercise between Rafael de Cabo, Ph.D. at the National Institute on Aging (NIA), David A. Sinclair, Ph.D. at Harvard Medical School and 13 other worldwide institutions. (Cell Metabolism; July 3rd 2008).

It has also caught the eye of several large pharmaceutical companies who are already trying to capture its benefits in a synthetic, patentable form - a new 'weight-reducer' resveratrol pill is on the way!

This natural compound does have significant and varied benefits but much of the research has taken place over the last few years, so it is not widely known, while, as usual, mis-information and over-claim abound.

What is resveratrol?

Resveratrol (3,4',5-trihydroxystilbene) is a natural phenolic compound found in trans- and cis- forms. There is a lot of excitement (and thus research and web pages) about the trans form, but little known on the benefits of the cis- form.
Both forms are found in the skins of a number of fruits and plants, where its prime function is to protect against potential invaders like moulds and fungi. The largest concentrations are found in red grape skins with about 10 per cent of these levels also occurring in blueberries and bilberries and even smaller amounts in raspberries and blackberries. Many people have lauded resveratrol as the major ‘health’ benefit component of red wine. A little understanding is however needed on this subject.
Red wine is produced with the wine being made on the grape skins and certain types of wine - particularly from damper areas of the globe – can contain up to 3 mgs of resveratrol per litre. However, white wine and champagne are produced having separated off the skins so contain little of this compound. Worse, the use of modern pesticides and fungicides has reduced the need for resveratrol in the grape skin because it seems to be produced in response to the threat of attack. So you get the double whammy – less resveratrol and a pesticide contaminated end product. This is causing less and less of this beneficial compound in bottles of mass-produced red wine, and stakes a strong claim for increasingly rare organic red wine. However, resveratrol is damaged by light and oxygen, so keeping the red wine on brightly lit supermarket shelves doesn’t help either, nor drinking a glass of wine in a restaurant which opened the bottle yesterday!
Research studies usually use concentrations of the compound above 20 mgs and there is little research on its safety at higher levels. Supplements frequently use resveratrol from plants and herbs other than grape skins – notably Polygorum Cuspidatum.

But red grapes are certainly not the only good source. For example, blackberries (black raspberries) provide a powerful mix of cancer-inhibiting compounds according to new research from the Ohio State University Cancer Center.
Rats injected with oesophageal cancer inducing factors were divided into two groups. The group eating black raspberries after two weeks had 60 per cent less cancers and the researchers concluded that the berries protected the genome from damage.
Indeed, the researchers described the results as ‘astonishing’. Having measured the gene activity in the rats, while 50 per cent altered due to the cancer induction in the normal group, 20 per cent less were altered in the group taking the berries.
Lead researcher Gary Stoner felt that these results must derive from a number of natural compounds in the fruit. But then that is exactly what we keep telling you at CANCERactive: Cancer is a multistep process and to tackle it you need to tackle the various steps and stages. Some natural compounds may work well on one step, while others work on other steps.
So, with that in mind, let us understand the importance of resveratrol.

General Benefits of Resveratrol

 From Research studies the benefits include include:

Yeast and Fungal infections

Not surprisingly, since resveratrol’s prime function in nature is to protect the sugary flesh of the fruit against moulds, fungi and yeasts, a study in Arch Pharm Res. 2005 May;28(5):557 found ‘potent anti-fungal activity’ in the human body with resveratrol. This included destruction of candida albicans.
Another study showed that administering resveratrol immediately after influenza infection, stopped the virus from replicating by altering certain factors in the potential host cells of the human body (Journal of Infectious Diseases May, 2005).

Anti-inflammation

A study in the American Journal of Physiology ( Lung Cell Mol Physiol. 2004 Jun 4) using resveratrol in conjunction with quercitin showed that they stopped the enzyme production, particularly of cytokines, that could lead to inflammation in cells. Importantly they did not interfere with the simultaneous activity of Tamoxifen, nor did it interfere with their activity, showing they could be taken simultaneously. This has implications for inflammatory diseases and particularly cancers like breast cancer.Interested in buying Resveratrol? Click here for the Natural Selection "Product of Choice".

Anti-ageing and calorie restriction

One of the most interesting developments has come in the area of calorie restriction. The Okinawans have the longest life expectancy in the world. One of the major reasons for this (apart from their high mineral and low sodium intakes) is calorie restriction – they consume up to 40 per cent less calories than even the Japanese of 50 years ago.

This is not the first time calorie restriction has been noted as a factor in longevity. The Norwegians had their food supplies dramatically reduced by the occupying German Military during the Second World War, yet their restricted diets of fish and lowered calories resulted in a 35 per cent overall health improvement. 

Research studies with rats show that calorie deprivation results in increased longevity: A 10-30 per cent reduction can almost double their life span. Harvard Researchers (icon 2. 2007) have even released a video explaining how cutting the food intake of any organism by 30-40 per cent can increase longevity.

Calorie restriction has a number of benefits:

• The end benefit is that the body is slimmer and leaner. Fat is a wonderful solvent. If you have fat stores around your body, they will hold toxins, chemicals and hormones you would rather excrete.
• Calorie restriction reduces metabolic rate. Your Power stations, or mitochondria, are not required to work as hard or burn as much fuel, so less waste products, toxins and free radicals are produced.
• Calorie restriction reduces insulin production, and this reduces the risks of both diabetes and cancer. IGF-1 levels are also lowered in the body – IGF-1 can cause the rapid multiplication of cells.
• But the important 'added discovery' is that calorie restriction increases the body's stress response-increasing survival hormones and, along with this, the body's ability to repair DNA and heighten cellular efficiency.

There have been a number of important research studies conducted by Harvard Medical School on nematodes, fruit flies and mice – most notably the study (Nature 2006;444:337-342) by Harvard and others using ‘small mice’. In this Resveratrol increased longevity by stimulating the survival defence enzyme ‘Sir’, which in turn stimulates the production of ‘sirtuins’ , survival defence hormones produced when animals are on restricted calorie diets. And in turn, this improved insulin sensitivity and reduced IGF-1 levels, increased mitochondrial numbers and activity, and improved motor function. Moreover it negated the detrimental effects of a high-calorie diet at a genetic level.

However the doseage used was 24 mgs per kilogram of body weight – equivalent to 1000 bottles per day of red wine!

Not surprisingly there are also scientific studies that show a restriction of calories can stop tumour growth. Drugs based on resveratrol are being studied for both anti-ageing and type-2 diabetes. But whilst Pharmaceutical companies are working on drugs to increase your longevity, your diabetes and cancer risks, your ‘eat-to-beat cancer’ strategy can be improved by the knowledge that ‘sirutins’ are crucial and they can be significantly stimulated by resveratrol.

The latest and most important study from the NIA, Harvard and the 13 worldwide centres, enhanced all these antiageing findings. Crucially, it seems keep you living younger, longer! And importantly for the overweight and obese, it seems to cancel out the negative effects of a poor diet – as the benefits were equal whether the mice were on a normal diet – or a calorie-rich one!!
Specific conclusions included:

• Resveratrol supplementation improves cardiovascular health and reduces fatty changes in the liver.
• Resveratrol supplementation prevented age- and obesity-related decline in cardiovascular function.
• Resveratrol supplementation significantly lowered total cholesterol and inflammation.
• Resveratrol supplementation increased the functioning of blood vessels significantly.
• Resveratrol supplementation seemed to result in better bone health.

Resveratrol supplementation reduced cataract formation, and enhanced balance and motor coordination.

So, how do you live younger, longer? Eat lots of organic dark red or black fruits and, if you can’t, supplement! Remember, it is likely that pesticide-sprayed or GM fruits will not produce significant quantities of resveratrol, as they have little need to naturally protect themselves from fungal attack

Dementia and Alzheimer’s

One of the biggest problems in Alzheimer’s is the build up of beta-amyloid peptides which destroy brain cells. A moderate red wine consumption has been found to correlate with lowered risk of Alzheimer’s. According to the University of Basel – in a study on cell cultures – resveratrol increases cell viability through offering neuro-protective and anti-oxidative benefits by enhancing the free-radical scavenger glutathione. 

Macular Degeneration

A disease that is increasingly common in the elderly, macular degeneration seems to be caused by the action of free radicals on the retinal repair cells, Research from the Food Group at Ohio State University (R. King) has shown that resveratrol can combat this.

Heart Disease

Interested in buying Resveratrol? Click here for the Natural Selection " Product of Choice".The World Health Organisation has suggested that resveratrol can reduce cardiovascular risks by up to 40 per cent. It blocks platelet ‘stickiness’ by blocking the aggregating factors, it prevents oxidation of Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) and reduces tri-glyceride and cholesterol levels. Most importantly, it appears to reduce tension levels and can relax and dilate the arteries.

Anti-cancer properties

Apart from the anti-cancer benefits mentioned above:

1. MD Anderson have researched resveratrol extensively and shown in a number of studies that resveratrol can be a potent force as a preventive and chemotherapy agent. They concluded that it suppresses cell proliferation in a wide variety of tumour cells, ‘including lymphoid and myeloid cancers; multiple myeloma; cancers of the breast, prostate, stomach, colon, pancreas, and thyroid; melanoma; head and neck squamous cell carcinoma; ovarian carcinoma; and cervical carcinoma’. They have found it to work at a number of levels, for example suppressing enzyme and protein production, suppressing cytokine production, suppressing Cox-2 and the formation of ‘bad’ eicosanoids, stimulating glutathione, and blocking various carcinogenic processes. It seems to concentrate in the liver and kidneys and is converted to a sulphated form which then blocks the process of cancer at a number of stages. They have even found it to have therapeutic effects. It can block the damaging effects of a linoleic acid-rich diet. MD Anderson  have concluded that it has a huge potential for fighting cancer and it can also improve the success rates of chemotherapy, appearing safe even in high
2. In studies with breast cancer and astrocytoma (brain tumour) cells, resveratrol has been shown to induce cancer cell death (apoptosis) via p53 pathways. P53 is the gene that repairs DNA. (Laux MT, Cornell University)
3. In studies with resveratrol and curcumin (Anticancer Research 2004 March), these two natural compounds seem to stop tumour cell growth and induce cancer cell death in neuroblastomas by activating the p53 gene pathway.
4. In a study of gliomas (Brain tumours) using rats (Clin Cancer Res. 2004; Mar) a concentration of resveratrol at 40 mgs per kilogram of body weight per day increased survival rate, by exerting an anti-tumour cell deaeffectth and an anti-vascular effect. It was concluded that the natural compound is a potent chemotherapy agent.
5. In studies on Neuroblastomas (brain tumours) in mice resveratrol appears to stop cellular proliferation, and alters the cellular structure of the tumour cells leading to cell death. It exerted clear ant-tumour effects (Surgery, 2004, July)
6. MD Anderson looked into resveratrol in combination with genistein for their effects with prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is driven through an Androgen Receptor pathway, and these two natural compounds suppressed the pathway at high concentrations. Alabama University have concluded in tests on mice that it can be hugely protective against prostate cancer development, and also with female mice and breast cancer.
7. An Austrian study showed that resveratrol could prevent metastasis forming in the bones, from primary tumours elsewhere.          At Last - the definitive, research based book on how to build a diet to help beat cancer. Click here to read about it.

Summary

So resveratrol is becoming a ‘wonder natural compound’. Its powers include:

•  Anti-fungal, anti-yeast, anti-viral
•  Antioxidant – promotes glutathione
•  Increases longevity
•  Protects against Heart disease, Alzheimer’s and  type-2 Diabetes
•  Anti-inflammatory
•  Protects DNA, stimulates repair genes
•  Protects against cancer
•  Kills cancer cells. Prevents metastasis
• Aids Chemotherapy results, whilst protecting healthy cells

To repeat, much of this is very, very new research and studies with humans are minimal. The levels of supplementation are unclear, although high doses seem safe.

If you are thinking of supplementing with Resveratrol, you might like to consider the specially selected ‘Product of Choice’, from Natural Selection. Click here to find out more. And if you are thinking supplementing with Curcumin click here for the Natural Selection "Product of Choice"

Other articles of interest:   Resveratrol Concentrate

Email: