Resveratrol and Cardiovascular Health: An Analysis of Recent Findings
Readers will remember Resveratrol, a polyphenolic compound found in grapes and red wine, known for its potential health benefits. Today, we delve into a recent study examining the effects of resveratrol on cardiovascular health, published in Nutrients in 2016. The study can be found here.
The scientists behind the research posited that resveratrol could prove beneficial against cardiovascular diseases. The increasing incidence of cardiovascular diseases worldwide makes it a pressing subject for scientific study.
An important part of their research focused on how resveratrol affects nitric oxide availability. The compound helped to restore the activity of an enzyme that degrades an inhibitor of nitric oxide production. By doing this, resveratrol could help improve nitric oxide availability and thus, combat the endothelial dysfunction observed in conditions like diabetes.
However, the estimation of resveratrol's potential is complicated. While preclinical studies led to the identification of molecular targets for resveratrol, there are intense debates about whether high-dose supplements provide results akin to lower concentrations of resveratrol found naturally in red wine. Nevertheless, research highlights the promising beneficial effects of resveratrol in cardiovascular diseases if the observations from preclinical studies can be reproduced in human clinical trials.
The study also analyzed the principal types of cardiovascular diseases, with researchers checking for potential ways to improve resveratrol's effects. In the case of atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, resveratrol's antioxidant properties potentially decreased LDL oxidation and increased HDL-cholesterol, reducing the likelihood of atherosclerosis.
