In people, dietary resveratrol levels showed no link to inflammation, disease, or lifespan.
What the evidence shows
Resveratrol, a compound in grape skins and red wine, became a supplement sensation after studies showed it extended lifespan in yeast and mice and activated 'longevity' pathways. It was offered as a scientific reason to feel good about wine.
Semba et al. (2014) measured resveratrol breakdown products in the urine of nearly 800 older Italian adults and followed them for nine years. People with higher dietary resveratrol did not have lower rates of inflammation, cancer, cardiovascular disease, or death. Whatever resveratrol does in a petri dish or a mouse, human dietary amounts from wine did not translate into longer life. The longevity claim, as applied to red wine and ordinary supplement doses, is refuted.
Sources
Semba, R. D., Ferrucci, L., Bartali, B., et al. (2014). Resveratrol levels and all-cause mortality in older community-dwelling adults.
JAMA Internal Medicine, 174(7), 1077–1084
Dietary resveratrol levels were not associated with inflammation, cardiovascular disease, cancer, or mortality over nine years.
DOI: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.1582 →