An editorial / By Dale McFeatters
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
It was good news when three years ago researchers found that a component of red wine prolonged the lifespan of lab mice by 30 percent, protected against obesity and lessened the incidence of age-related degenerative diseases like diabetes.
But wait, as they say. The news gets even better.
Researchers in France found that the same red-wine component, called reseveratrol, also increases strength and physical endurance. Lab mice dosed with high levels of reseveratrol could run twice as far as normal.
The component, also found in grapes and peanuts, steps up production of an enzyme that fires up muscle cells, thus increasing the metabolism, and good things follow.
OK, that's great for the mice, but what about us?
Frustratingly, it's early days yet for the research. To get the same effect as the mice, a human would have to take hundreds of huge doses of reseveratrol or drink hundreds of glasses of red wine a day. This would, of course, cause other problems, and longevity would not be among them.
This is an outgrowth of research into the French Paradox. How certain Europeans, notably the French, can eat high-calorie, high-fat diets but have a low instance of obesity and heart attacks. The common denominator: red wine.
We don't know where this research will wind up, but we like the direction it's headed.
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