Resveratrol Might Help Prevent Weight Gain

Resveratrol, an antioxidant phytochemical found in the skins of red grapes, red wine, and purple grape juice as well as other foods, has been implicated in a number of possible health benefits, particularly heart health.  Emerging research continues to suggest that resveratrol might have anti-obesity benefits.  In fact, one recent human cell culture study suggests that resveratrol modifies the growth, development, and function of human fat cells.  However, the vast majority of this research to date has been done in rodents or cell culture systems.

A new obesity research study (free to read) examined the potential weight control benefits of resveratrol in a non-human primate (grey mouse lemur) model of obesity.  For this study, obesity researchers fed resveratrol to the lemurs for 4 weeks during their winter period of natural weight gain.  Changes in body weight, food intake, metabolic rate, hormone profiles, daily activity, and more were examined.  The obesity researchers reported that:

• Weight gain was suppressed from about 6% to 1% after the addition of reseveratrol to the lemur's diet.
• Addition of resveratrol to the diet reduced overall food consumption by 13%
• The resting metabolic rate of the lemurs fed resveratrol for 4 weeks increased by 29%.

These are interesting results that continue to support the possible weight control benefits of resveratrol.  Based on this new animal study, resveratrol appears to support weight control by reducing food consumption and increasing metabolism, thereby altering the ratio of 'calories in' versus 'calories out' in a beneficial direction.  Since resveratrol did not have any impact on levels of gut hormones involved in appetite suppression, the reason for the reduction in food consumption appears uncertain in this study.

While the weight loss or weight control benefits of resveratrol continue to get a lot of attention, the actual research in human volunteers remains sparse.  However, one new study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism reports that resveratrol has anti-inflammatory actions in human subjects and according to ClinicalTrials.gov a number of resveratrol obesity-related studies are in progress.  Therefore, we might have a clearer picture of resveratrol's weight control benefits in the near future.  In the mean time, resveratrol appears to have possible anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits and can be found in a number of foods that can be included as part of a healthy diet.

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