The study involved male mice that were fed a plant compound
found in red wine called resveratrol, which has shown
anti-oxidant and anti-cancer properties. Other sources
of resveratrol in the diet include grapes, raspberries,
peanuts and blueberries.
In the study resveratrol-fed mice showed an 87 percent
reduction in their risk of developing prostate tumors
that contained the worst kind of cancer-staging diagnosis.
The mice that proved to have the highest cancer-protection
effect earned it after seven months of consuming resveratrol
in a powdered formula mixed with their food.
Other mice in the study, those fed resveratrol but
still developed a less-serious form of prostate cancer,
were 48 percent more likely to have their tumor growth
halted or slowed when compared to mice who did not consume
the compound, the UAB research team said.
This study adds to a growing body of evidence that
resveratrol consumption through red wine has powerful
chemoprevention properties, in addition to its apparent
heart-health benefits, said lead study author Dr.Coral
Lamartiniere, Ph.D., of UAB's Department of Pharmacology
and Toxicology.
An earlier UAB study published May 2006 in the same
journal found resveratrol-fed female mice had considerable
reduction in their risk of breast cancer.
Lamartiniere said his research team has been pleasantly
surprised at the chemoprevention power of wine and berry
polyphenols like resveratrol in animal models.
"A cancer prevention researcher lives for these
days when they can make that kind of finding,"
Lamartiniere said. "I drink a glass a day every
evening because I'm concerned about prostate cancer.
It runs in my family."
Lamartiniere and other researchers say work is already
underway to test resveratrol consumption in humans to
see what concentrations are needed to convey cancer-prevention
benefits.
However, it must be emphasized that the amounts used
in the UAB mice studies were the equivalent of one person
consuming one bottle of red wine per day, which is not
advisable. Since drinking alcohol in excessive amounts
can have harmful health effects, doctors generally recommend
moderate red wine consumption, which is an average of
two drinks a day for men and one drink a day for women.
Funding support came from the U.S. Department of Defense
and the National Cancer Institute.
The findings were published in August through the online
edition of the Journal of Carcinogenesis.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com
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