Resveratrol and prostate health

You probably already know that the resveratrol in wine is great for your heart and could help prevent metabolic syndrome. It also may help you manage your weight, and protect against breast cancer.

But now comes something important if you're a guy.

A researcher at the University of Missouri has discovered that resveratrol could help fight prostate cancer. More specifically, for people who have made the choice to go with conventional therapies, resveratrol could increase the effectiveness of those therapies.

Researcher Michael Nicholl found that resveratrol can make prostate tumor cells, even in aggressive tumors, more susceptible to radiation. Previous studies have shown a similar effect with chemotherapy.

Resveratrol appears to target two proteins already present in the tumors--proteins that cause the tumors to self-destruct. Using the wine compound led to up to an amazing 97 percent of tumor cells dying after radiation treatment. This is a vast improvement over the percentage tackled using just radiation, and it worked on all types of prostate cancer cells.

The only drawback is that the dosage of resveratrol needed to have this effect is very high. While not much is needed at the site of the tumor for it to work the body processes resveratrol very quickly, so a person would need to take a great deal of it to make sure there's enough left to get to the tumor.

This research is still in the early stages, but no side effects have been described in studies of resveratrol, so it's a safe (and possibly very effective!) possible addition to a cancer fight.

For general long-term use of resveratrol a suggested dose ranging from 30 to 100 mg per day. You should consult with a doctor skilled in natural medicine to determine the right course of action and the right dose for your body and situation.

More information on resveratrol here.