INFERTILITY

Dear Reader,

INFERTILITY

This past month I came across an article that seemed important enough to get it out there sooner rather than later.  Rather than wait for another 4 or 5 interesting studies I wanted to share with you a report from China which was published this month.  They were looking at age-associated infertility and a mouse model.  The question was whether resveratrol would protect against the reduction in fertility in aging mice.  This seemed important in the light of the fact that there is a rise in the level of infertility in this country along with women waiting until later in life to begin families.  Half of the female mice had resveratrol added to their drinking water and the other half did not.  The mice were fed for up to 12 months and the results were that the resveratrol treated mice had a larger follicle pool and the ovaries resembled those of young mice.  They retained the capacity to reproduce while age-matched controls without resveratrol produced no pups.  Human studies have not been done yet.  On the other hand, consumption of resveratrol is safe and has other positive health benefits with regard to its antioxidant, anti-aging and anti-inflammatory properties.  In the meantime the research will continue.

Thank you for continuing to follow this blog.  More to follow.

Dr. Bob

COPD, PREGNANCY, HARDENING OF ARTERIES, PROSTATE CANCER

Welcome.  Thank you for investing a bit of your valuable time to this blog on resveratrol.  I will try to be brief but concise so that you will leave feeling it was worth your time.  This is already free so you can't say it was not worth your money, but you can say it was not worth your time. 

#1 COPD The researchers at Imperial College London in the United Kingdom looked at gero protectors (protecting from aging) and COPD (the lung condition also known as chronic bronchitis or emphysema).  COPD is a disease of aging which presents more and more problems as you get older.  They reviewed a variety of articles of COPD and aging and concluded that slowing aging will slow the progression of COPD.  They also reviewed the antiaging properties of resveratrol.  Their conclusion was that resveratrol "might be an attractive approach for the treatment of COPD  by preventing premature aging of the lung.”

Int J Chron Obstruct Pulm Dis 2012:7; 641–52

#2 Pregnancy: Protection of the fetus from Kusturba Medical College in Mangalore, India comes a  study of the known neuroprotective effects of resveratrol on a fetus whose mother is subjected to stress.  Pregnant rats were restrained to induce stress.  Half were given resveratrol and the other half not.  The babies were born and they were put through learning tests such as the open field test and the Morris water maze.  Gestational stress affected spatial learning and memory.  Resveratrol  reversed these learning deficits.  There was a “neuroprotective  efficacy of resveratrol  against prenatal stress induced cognitive impairment.”  It is safe.  Think about resveratrol in stressful pregnancies. 

Pharmacal Biochem Behav  2012 October 5: 270–5

#3 Hardening of the arteries The Winthrop University Hospital in Mineola New York looked at prevention of vascular disease.  Arterial plaques, or hardening of the arteries leading to stroke, heart attack, or peripheral vascular disease is caused by cells lining the arteries, called macrophages, eating cholesterol and growing and blocking blood flow.  In cells given resveratrol they took up less cholesterol, slowing the growth of plaques and arteries.  A safe way to prevent problems, especially in high-risk patients.  Eur J Pharmacol 2012, October 736–44

#4 Prostate cancer The University of Missouri published a study on prostate cancer cells which continued to grow after the patient had radiation and failed.  These cells were exposed to resveratrol and reradiated (the original owner had died but the cells lived on).  Exposure to radiation after resveratrol resulted in cell deaths.  There are no known studies on prostate cancer and patients on resveratrol before radiation therapy,  but again, it is safe and has a potential benefit in men considering radiation for prostate cancer.  Cancer side 2012 June 1 09 0–8

#5 Prostate cancer From the University Hospital at Leuven, Belgium comes a review study on resveratrol and prostate cancer.  Several studies have shown a protective effect on preventing prostate cancer.  Patients with high-grade PIN, a pre cancerous change in prostate cells at high risk for progression to prostate cancer as well as patients with increased PSA or positive family history of prostate cancer were followed.  The risk of recurrence decreased for those on resveratrol .  Do you see a pattern here?  Cancer Manag Res 2011:3; 91–100

#6 Prostate cancer and chemotherapy A study from M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston looked at chemotherapy drugs and prostate cancer.  A variety of cancer drugs were used against cell cultures of prostate cancer cells, half of which were  given small amounts of resveratrol.  Those exposure to resveratrol had better cancer killing results in combination with chemotherapy than without.  Ann NY Acad Sci 2011 Jan 150–60

Several examples of situations where a safe addition to your daily intake (resveratrol) could help improve or prevent a variety of different health issues.  I think this is worth considering and worth sharing with others.  Until next time.

Dr. Bob 

MEMORY, SUPPLEMENTS, AGING, BREAST CANCER, FOOD ALLERGIES, OVARIAN CANCER

Blog 15

Not to beat a dead course but if you are new to us or new to blogs, the early ones are at the very bottom.  Feel free to scroll all the way down and start at the beginning.  For those who have been here already, please look at the current choices from medical journals on resveratrol.  The articles could be found at pubmed.com.

Memory--from the People's Republic of China comes a study on learning in old mice.  A group of mice was bred to age quickly.  Three quarters were fed resveratrol at 3 different doses and one fourth none.  They were then subjected to tests requiring learning.  The resveratrol fed mice did better on the Morris water maze test along with coordination and strength in a tightrope test.  Resveratrol can help in the learning ability that is normally lost with aging. 

Life Sci  2012 September 12

Disrespect of  Supplements--this paper comes from the Medical University of Vienna.  Many scientists love to talk about how food supplements are a waste of money because they do not help in any way.  This article is looking at whether resveratrol can stabilize DNA in healthy humans.  They  gave people resveratrol as a supplement and measured DNA stability after one and 5 days on resveratrol.  Each subject received 6 mg per day.  There was no difference between resveratrol subjects and control subjects with regard to DNA stability.  Shaklee's resveratrol product Vivix recommends taking the product for months or even years and the recommended dose is 100 mg per day.  This is not really a fair experiment on the effectiveness of resveratrol on DNA. 

Mutat Res 2012 September

Blood Flow in the Aging--from Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine comes a study on resveratrol and blood flow in aging mice.  Of the same rapidly aging mice with hypertension,  one half were given resveratrol and the other half not.  After 6 weeks there was a significant increase in blood flow in the resveratrol group and a biopsy of the arteries showed that there was less in the way of aging changes in the arteries of the resveratrol mice.

 Atherosclerosis 2012 September

Breast Cancer--food scientists from Dongseo University in Seoul, Korea looked at breast cancer in mice.  A group of mice had breast cancer cells injected intravenously and then one third was given resveratrol, one third was given a double dose of resveratrol and one third was given none.  After 14 weeks they were killed and autopsied.  Cancer cellular activity and the number of metastases were measured.  Both resveratrol groups had "significantly decreased" cancer growth and activity.  Resveratrol inhibited cancer metastasis. 

Nutr Res Pract 2012 August 2 194–300

Food Allergies--immunologists at the University of Yamanashi  in Japan studied mice for food allergies.  When mice are fed Cholera toxin, they develop food allergies.  As you can already guess, half were given resveratrol and half were not.  They were then challenged with different foods commonly associated with food allergies.  As you might also guess, the resveratrol fed mice had fewer mice who developed food allergies.  In kids who are already food sensitive, resveratrol would be worth adding to their diet.  Are there human studies to support this?  No.  Is it safe?  Yes.  It is worth considering. 

PLOS 2012 (9)

Ovarian Cancer--out of the University of Sydney in Australia comes a study on ovarian cancer cell cultures.  Researchers are constantly looking for ways to increase the effectiveness of the chemotherapy agents we already have.  Human ovarian cancer cells were used.  Half of the cultures were mixed with platinum based  chemotherapy.  The other half were given resveratrol followed 2 weeks later with a platinum-based chemotherapy.  The chemotherapy with resveratrol showed that the cancer cells suffered more cell depths offering a safe and affordable way of increasing the effectiveness of chemotherapy. 

Anticancer Research 2012 January 53–59

This has been a real potpourri, or something for everyone.  I continue to be a believer and user of resveratrol in the form of Shaklee’s Vivix and continue to get good results.  See you next time. 

Dr. Bob