Resveratrol Supplements for Cancer, Do They Help?

Research into resveratrol supplements for cancer has shown that they can be an effective form of prevention as well as treatment of various types of cancer. Although, as with any new form of treatment, you should consult with your physician before you begin introducing any new compounds into your therapy. Cancer treatment involves multiple types of medication and procedures, and if you are undertaking any of these you need to make sure that adding resveratrol will not lead to negative side effects as a result of its reaction with your other forms of treatment.

Resveratrol is a fat soluble compound that is produced by some types of plants as a reaction to stress, injury, or ultraviolet radiation. Increased interest in the resveratrol compound started around 1992 when it was discovered that it is a chemical found in red wine. This led scientists to believe that it may prove to be an explanation for the French paradox, namely that drinking red wine reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Resveratrol has certain biological effects and activities that can aid in cancer prevention. For example, there are certain compounds that become carcinogenic only when they have been metabolized by certain enzymes in our bodies. Resveratrol seems to decrease exposure to these toxic compounds as well as promoting their excretion. It has also been shown to help cease the functioning of defective cell cycles, when in contact with cancerous cells.

Cancer is a disease in which healthy cells no longer have a shut-off switch. Healthy cells have a cycle, they are born, reproduce and then die, which keeps everything in balance. Diseased cells no longer contain the genetically programmed death signal, which means they reproduce faster, and by not being eliminated, they begin to overpower the affected organs. Resveratrol has been found to curtail this reproductive cycle as well as reactivating the termination code that healthy cells contain.

iseased cells invade healthy tissue by using certain enzymes, and it has been shown that resveratrol helps to inhibit the activity of these enzymes. Resveratrol also seems to reduce inflammation by inhibiting certain inflammatory enzymes from operating. Inflammation has been shown to promote unhealthy cellular reproduction as well as deregulating naturally programmed cell death.

Due to the fact that resveratrol is quickly metabolized and eliminated by the human body, it requires to be taken relatively large doses. For example, a study was conducted on 12 people, who took a dose of 25 mg of resveratrol were show to only contain traces of the unmodified compound in their blood. To ingest even only 25 mg of resveratrol from natural food sources is highly impractical, because you would have to drink approximately 5 liters of wine daily.

There are many resveratrol supplements for cancer that contain different doses of the compound, so that you will not have difficult in meeting your doctorís recommendations. Although it is a relatively new discovery, and the medical profession would prefer to conduct many more long-term studies before making a definitive statement regarding their efficiency, in all research to date resveratrol supplements for cancer have proven to be highly effective in preventing the disease as well as stemming its progression.