Resveratrol, a natural part of many foods including grapes, pomegranates, and red wine, may influence aging on a genetic level and could give protection to the heart, according to a study released on June 4, 2008 in the open-access journal PLoS ONE.
The so-called "French paradox" entertains the seeming contradiction that the typical French diet, high in saturated fats, somehow produces people with remarkably good cardiac health. Part of the key may be resveratrol: previous studies have shown that this substance in high doses will extend lifespan in invertebrates and prevent premature mortality in mice who are provided a high fat diet.
In this study, conducted by a group of researchers from both academia and industry, further investigated these findings -- namely, they examined the effects of resveratrol in low doses in middle age. Middle aged mice were administered low doses of resveratrol and the researchers observed the effects on the heart, muscle, and brain by looking for changes in gene expression of these tissues over time as the genes were switched on or off. These changes were compared with mice who were simply fed a reduced calorie diet, approximately 20-30% fewer calories than a typical diet.
It was found that these low doses actually mimic the benefits of the reduced calorie diet. For example, in normal control mice, there are at least 1,029 known gene expression changes with age which correlated with diminishing function in the organ. On the restricted diet, the mice showed differences in 90% of those changes in gene expression, while mice with low doses of resveratrol showed different patterns in 92% of the normal aging changes in the heart. These findings could help explain the prevention in the decline in heart function related to age.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/109799.phpI'll drink to that!
Me too.........Bottoms Up!!