2008 Woodie Awards
Red wine linked to suppression of breast cancer
Teresa Lostroh
Issue date: 8/27/08 Section: News
Next time you see someone with a patch on their arm, don't assume they're kicking the smoking habit.
They may just be getting their daily dose of healthy benefits from red wine.
Holsten pharmaceutical company boasts "the only Red Wine Patch in the World." The patch delivers a potent dose of the antioxidant resveratrol - a quantity amounting to 444 times the dosage in a glass of red wine.
Resveratrol is a chemical found in red wine and the skin of grapes that is thought to possess various health benefits, including an ability to suppress the development of breast cancer, according to researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The team of six researchers spent six weeks investigating the effects resveratrol has on human breast tissue cells. During the study, the cells were transformed from healthy to malignant, or harmful, using certain estrogens thought to lead to breast cancer.
With resveratrol, the team was able to "inhibit the formation of estrogen-DNA adducts," explained Eleanor Rogan, the UNMC researcher who led the study.
This achievment is the first in a series of steps to prevent breast cancer, which is expected to kill 40,480 women this year alone, according to the American Cancer Society.
"We think that resveratrol is a good agent that may be able to prevent the start of breast cancer," Rogan said.
But wine lovers beware: The study was conducted using solely resveratrol - no alcohol was involved, and Rogan is not convinced the resveratrol in red wine would be beneficial in warding off potential cancers.
"There are a couple of problems with getting resveratrol from red wine," Rogan warned.
For starters, the level of the chemical present from one batch of wine to the next is very inconsistent - some contain much stronger doses than others.
Secondly, Rogan said the relatively low concentration of resveratrol in the beverage is likely not enough to earn the drinker much of a benefit "unless you drink a lot of red wine."
They may just be getting their daily dose of healthy benefits from red wine.
Holsten pharmaceutical company boasts "the only Red Wine Patch in the World." The patch delivers a potent dose of the antioxidant resveratrol - a quantity amounting to 444 times the dosage in a glass of red wine.
Resveratrol is a chemical found in red wine and the skin of grapes that is thought to possess various health benefits, including an ability to suppress the development of breast cancer, according to researchers at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.
The team of six researchers spent six weeks investigating the effects resveratrol has on human breast tissue cells. During the study, the cells were transformed from healthy to malignant, or harmful, using certain estrogens thought to lead to breast cancer.
With resveratrol, the team was able to "inhibit the formation of estrogen-DNA adducts," explained Eleanor Rogan, the UNMC researcher who led the study.
This achievment is the first in a series of steps to prevent breast cancer, which is expected to kill 40,480 women this year alone, according to the American Cancer Society.
"We think that resveratrol is a good agent that may be able to prevent the start of breast cancer," Rogan said.
But wine lovers beware: The study was conducted using solely resveratrol - no alcohol was involved, and Rogan is not convinced the resveratrol in red wine would be beneficial in warding off potential cancers.
"There are a couple of problems with getting resveratrol from red wine," Rogan warned.
For starters, the level of the chemical present from one batch of wine to the next is very inconsistent - some contain much stronger doses than others.
Secondly, Rogan said the relatively low concentration of resveratrol in the beverage is likely not enough to earn the drinker much of a benefit "unless you drink a lot of red wine."
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Ken Osborn
posted 8/27/08 @ 3:27 PM CST
Interesting - however I will continue to drink a glass or two of red wine once in a while. Wine of choice - Gatro Negra (or black cat, of course)
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