Zijn al die uitspraken over de heilzame werking van resveratrol in de schil van rode druivenrassen wel serieus te nemen? Een groot aantal wel, vindt dr. Richard Beliveau. Hij schreef als kankerspecialist van de universiteit van Ottawa Canada een artikel, waarin hij onderzoekresultaten doorlicht. Wij achten het van belang om zoveel mogelijk wetenschappelijke visies over de heilzame werking van rode wijn aan u door te geven. De website van de krant Ottawa Sun publiceerde het volgende artikel:

“Drinking red wine in moderation is linked an incredible range of positive health benefits, especially the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. One recent study also showed that certain substances in red wine may help our overall health by preventing the accumulation of fat and the development of obesity.
Red wine is the most complex drink in the entire human diet. This complexity is due to an impressive number of compounds that are extracted from the skin of the grape during the fermentation process, including anthocyanins, phenols, flavonols and other phytochemical compounds.

LONG LIST
Amongst the hundreds of compounds found in wine, resveratrol has undeniably stirred up the most interest in the scientific community. Numerous studies have demonstrated that resveratrol can influence a long list of physiological functions involved in the development of several chronic diseases. For example, resveratrol reduces the risk of heart disease by stopping the accumulation of atheromatous (lipid-containing) plaques on the walls of blood vessels by improving the ability of arteries to dilate.

PREVENTATIVE
Resveratrol also has powerful anti-cancerous properties, since it is one of the only food-based compounds that can affect multiple crucial stages of a cancer’s growth at the same time, both in preventing the onset of the disease, as well as stopping pre-existing cancer cells from maturing. Researchers have also found that resveratrol has preventative effects on neurodegenerative diseases and type 2 diabetes.

LONGVITY
We’ve known for several years that reducing the number of calories in your diet (while maintaining adequate levels of essential nutrients) causes major changes to your metabolism that lead to an increase in life expectancy. In what is likely one of the most amazing discoveries in recent years, it was shown that resveratrol targets these same mechanisms, especially the activation of a protein called sirtuin, to mimic the positive effects of reduced caloric intake on longevity.

REDUCTION
Recent study results published by a team of German researchers suggest that resveratrol could also have a direct effect on body weight by interfering with the build-up of fat in adipose tissue (adipocytes). Using immature adipocytes (fat cells) as a model, they first observed that adding resveratrol to these cells stopped them from reaching maturity, where they were likely to multiply and increase in size. In addition, resveratrol blocks the formation of new fat cells around the adipocytes while increasing the breakdown of existing fats. The combined effects from resveratrol mean a net reduction in the volume of adipose tissue.

Excess body fat is linked to a staggering increase in several serious diseases, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer. Because red wine is the only food that contains significant amounts of resveratrol, the combined results of these studies emphasize its positive role in the prevention of chronic diseases, as well as maintaining a healthy body weight.

MODERATION
Consuming wine should still be done in moderation (one glass a day for women, one to two glasses for men) to avoid the caloric (100 kcal/100 ml) and carcinogenic side-effects from drinking large quantities of alcohol. But red wine should be included on the list of preventative habits in a healthy lifestyle, and not merely be seen as one option out of many.

Dr. Richard Beliveau holds the chair in cancer prevention and treatment at the University of Quebec in Montreal.