The new kid is called Resveratrol – found in the skins of red grapes, and containing large quantities of anti-oxidants, it has been found to prevent the growth of cancer cells. The University of Alabama conducted a study on male rats and found that the mice’s risk of developing prostate cancer decreased by about 87% when they were fed Resveratrol. The best thing is, the mice didn’t show any adverse signs after ingesting it.
There were two groups, one fed with Resveratrol and one left alone. The control group showed a 23% rate of prostate cancer, whereas the group fed with the drug showed a mere 3% rate. This result shows a 87% drop in cancer incidences. If this result can be shown in humans, then Resveratrol will be an excellent anti-cancer treatment.
It has also shown the ability to repress the formation of the abnormal cell formation that leads to several types of breast cancer. According to Eleanor G. Rogan, Ph.D a professor at the Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases, University of Nebraska Medical, Resveratrol can potentially prevent the first step to cancer, by blocking the estrogen DNA adducts from forming, which then stops the whole process, thereby preventing cancer from happening.
Rogan said that the Resveratrol works because it induces an enzyme (quinone reductase), which reduces the estrogen metabolite to an inactive form, which then reduces the risk. However, more tests would have to be done in larger human trials to confirm the findings.