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Longevity Seekers Advised to Consume Modest Doses of Red Wine Molecules in Dietary Supplements (Longevinex(R)) Rather than Mega-Dose Resveratrol Alone

Posted on: Saturday, 27 December 2008, 12:06 CST

SAN DIMAS, Calif., Dec. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the latest science, resveratrol pill users are best advised to consume modest doses of resveratrol plus an array of antioxidant molecules as typically provided in 3 to 5 glasses of aged, red wine, rather than resveratrol alone.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080603/LATU039 )

The most recent study shows mega-dose resveratrol alone fails to prolong the life of laboratory mice. In fact, mega-doses shortened the life of animals compared to a standard calorie diet with no resveratrol. [Cell Metabolism. 2008 Aug; 8:157-68]

"While resveratrol (rez-vair-ah-trol), an antioxidant molecule concentrated in red wine (about 1 milligram per glass), is touted for its health properties, partially explaining the French Paradox (why French wine drinkers have cardiac mortality rates 30% lower than North Americans despite their high-calorie, high-fat diets), it is not the sole molecule responsible for longevity," says Bill Sardi, spokesperson for Longevinex(R), a leading brand of resveratrol dietary supplement.

"The total array of red wine molecules found in the best red wine, about 60 milligrams per 5-ounce glass, or 180-300 milligrams in 3 to 5 glasses, is the suggested healthy dosage range," says Sardi.

Consistently, studies show modest doses of red wine lower mortality rates over abstention or over-consumption. [American Journal Epidemiology 1986 Sep; 124(3):481-9] Red wine pills offer the advantage of no alcohol, no calories or sulfite preservatives.

Cause of shortened lifespan

The negative effect upon lifespan with mega-dose resveratrol may emanate from over-inhibition of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), an inflammatory factor. Excessive TNF leads to inflammation, while too little impairs the immune system, says Sardi.

"We know that over-inhibition of TNF in humans increases the risk for lymphoma (cancer that originates in lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell)," says Sardi. [Therapeutics Clinical Risk Management 2007 Jun; 3(2):245-58] "When laboratory mice were given mega-dose resveratrol they did not live as long and largely succumbed to lymphoma. Resveratrol is a known TNF inhibitor," adds Sardi. [Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 2008 May 2; 369(2):471-7]

Confusing dosage advice

While longevity seekers have been hearing a lot about resveratrol in the past four years, since an Ivy League university discovered it activated a longevity gene known as Sirtuin 1, advice concerning dosage has been confusing at times.

A 2006 mouse study suggested consumers would have to drink about 750 to 1500 bottles of red wine a day to live longer (24 milligrams per kilogram of body weight), but the longevity effect was only demonstrated among mice engorged with a fat-laden diet (60% fat calories vs. 35% for the typical human diet), which isn't a real-world example.

When the data on mice fed a standard calorie diet were analyzed and published in 2008 [Cell Metabolism. 2008 Aug; 8(2):157-68], ultra-high dose resveratrol (360 mg and 1565 mg, human equivalent dosage) actually stunted the lifespan of mice. So the public has been misled concerning dosage since 2006 [Nature 2006 Nov 16; 444:337-42], and may have never heard about the 2008 report, says Sardi.

Lower dose resveratrol accompanied by an array of other small molecules may be superior to resveratrol alone. According to a mouse study conducted by Longevinex(R), published in the September 2008 issue of Experimental Gerontology [2008 Sept; 43(9):859-66], far more longevity genes were activated in heart tissue by Longevinex (9-fold more) than plain resveratrol, at a dose that was 17-320 times lower than doses used in prior studies.

Synergism found

"A synergistic effect has been demonstrated with the array of antioxidant molecules provided in Longevinex(R), compared to resveratrol alone," says Sardi. Other studies also corroborate that resveratrol works better when accompanied by other molecules, at lower doses. [Journal Medicinal Food 2008 Dec; 11:773-83; Translational Oncology 2008 March; 1:19-27; Life Science 2008 May 7; 82: 1032-9]

Sardi says longevity seekers often demand human lifespan studies, not realizing such a study would be impractical, taking 100 years to complete. Mouse longevity studies take about 3-4 years and cost more than a million dollars, so more economical gene array studies are performed and compared against a calorie restricted diet, which is a known intervention that prolongs life in all life forms. Longevinex(R) also sponsored an unpublished study showing it activated far more genes in brain tissue than plain resveratrol.

Longevinex(R) is a patent-applied-for matrix providing 250 milligrams of gene-controlling molecules (resveratrol, quercetin, rice bran IP6, ferulic acid, vitamin D), and is currently the only resveratrol-based dietary supplement to have been successfully studied in humans. Researchers at Appalachian State University found Longevinex(R) had superior antioxidant and anti-inflammatory action among endurance athletes compared to green tea molecules or quercetin alone.

Longevinex(R) is microencapsulated for stability and long-term shelf life, and is micronized to enhance absorption. Longevinex(R) contains no alcohol. Longevity seekers are invited to visit the website at www.longevinex.com

SOURCE Longevinex

Source: PR Newswire

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