Resveratrol: A Life Extender?

By Author: PiperThomas
Total Articles: 8
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Over millions of years, plants or plantae survived as the other half of the main taxonomy of living things according to Carolus Linnaeus, aside from animals or animalia. In order to survive, plants have evolved stronger as countless millennia passed by. Including in this gradual but indispensable evolution, plants have been able to develop defense mechanisms to last as an existing classification of life form on Earth. One of these defense mechanisms is resveratrol.

Resveratrol is a substance produced by some plants as a defense mechanism when being infected by harmful agents such as bacteria or fungi. It dates back its reference to 1939 on a Japanese research article. Resveratrol was derived from another plant substance called resorcinol and from the plant Veratrum album, where it was first extracted.

Due to its beneficial factors, resveratrol inspired many scientists to conduct studies about it, especially on the belief that it can extend life. Extensive experiments were held on this substance hoping to harness its effects on plants and to convert it into a wonder drug. Tests began on research animals such as ...
... laboratory rats and mice and have resulted to documented cases of increasing resistance to cancer, lowering blood sugar, and reducing inflammation of vital organs, among others.

On human, natural resveratrol also showed quite a number of beneficial effects. It can increase body endurance and reduce stress at the same time. It can also reduce the building up of liver fats caused by the abuse of alcohol consumption, in a natural way. Aside from this, it has been shown to provide a positive effect to the various organs of the body.

Natural resveratrol is mainly found on red grapes, specifically on the skin of the fruit. It is believed to be the main reason why red wine has been proven to be a healthy drink when taken in moderated amounts.

Today, natural resveratrol are extracted on a larger scale from Japanese knotweeds and are sold as health supplements in the market. Preserving its natural healing qualities, resveratrol are available with purity ranging from 5-100%, depending on the amount of resveratrol's substance concentration. The higher the concentration or purity, the more expensive the concoction becomes.