Red wine has often been heralded as a drink that gives numerous health benefits (not just by being a lower calorie drink than beer).
But now new research has found that red wine could help you stay young for longer.
Experiments have been carried out giving mice the compound resveratrol. Resveratrol is found in red wine and is a ‘phytoalexin’ - that means it is one of a group of antibiotic compounds made by plants to defend themselves against disease. It is found in the skin of red grapes.
The mice were overweight but those given resveratrol were found to live longer, have healthier hearts and livers and better insulin sensitivity.
The scientists believe the chemical could help to defend human cells against damage and illnesses often associated with old age. Clinical trials are now underway to examine what effects a pill version could have on humans. In the past other studies have found resveratrol increased the lifespan of fruit flies and worms by almost 30 per cent and fish by nearly 60 per cent.
The bad news is that a glass of red wine contains the equivalent of only 0.3 per cent of the amount of resveratrol given to the mice and drinking more wine to compensate is going to have negative health effects.
However the research seems to provide another example of how moderate consumption of red wine can have a health benefit. It may also add another part to the explanation of the so-called “French paradox”. This paradox is that the rates of coronary heart disease is relatively low in southern France despite high dietary intake of saturated fats. Many scientists believe this is due to other dietary factors – such as red wine intake.
