More Good News for Red Wine Drinkers

Resveratrol.

Even to a science-class-challenged “kid” like me, the word just rolls off the tongue.

I’ve learned the word and learned to love it because it’s linked to the health benefits associated with the moderate consumption of wine—in particular, red wine.

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about it:

“Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxy-trans-stilbene) is a stilbenoid, a type of natural phenol, and a phytoalexin produced naturally by several plants—especially the roots of the Japanese Knotweed, from which it is extracted commercially — when under attack by pathogens such as bacteria or fungi.”

Okay, I understand about three words of that definition—plants… when… under—but from everything I’ve read on the topic, resveratrol is a good thing when it comes to wine.

And now, thanks to chemists at the University of British Columbia, there’s even more good news about the “stuff” in red wine. According to this report, those chemists have discovered 23 new molecules in red wine that they believe could enhance health and possibly even lead to medical breakthroughs once we know more about them.

The report did not list the names of the molecules—which I probably couldn’t pronounce anyway—but it did indicate that they are related to resveratrol.

The greatest impact resveratrol has is on age-related diseases. So, if things pan out the way the B.C. chemists think they will, we red wine drinkers could be around a lot longer, and toasting our good fortune with our favorite adult beverage.