Comprehensive Library Of Resveratrol News

Resveratrol is the safest and most efficacious alternative to estrogen replacement therapy for menopausal women.

The idea behind using resveratrol or any phyto (plant) estrogen is this molecule’s ability to seat itself on estrogen cell receptors (doorways of entry into cells), thus blunting the effect of natural estrogen.  At the same time, resveratrol produces beneficial estrogen-like properties.

Fear of estrogen is unfounded

Around ten million American women take estrogen replacement therapy.

The fears created among post-menopausal women over estrogen replacement were poorly founded and left women to take problematic bone hardening drugs, blood-pressure-lowering drugs, and antidepressants.   Years after the estrogen fear-mongering, we learn women have no higher risk for death from taking estrogen replacement.

But the symptoms of menopause can be overwhelming.  Premenopausal women in the 50-59 age ground are the most likely to experience the hot flashes and other side effects of menopausal estrogen decline.  In this group, estrogen can be taken safely.

But the fear of estrogen replacement remains.

Estrogen supplementation may produce unfavorable changes such as elevated blood pressure and faster heart rate.  The phytoestrogen resveratrol completely reverses all of these adverse effects.  Science Daily published a report about resveratrol’s counteraction against estrogen, found here.  Resveratrol is a good companion to supplemental estrogen.

When rats had their ovaries removed their blood pressure rose.  This suggests reduction or even over-supply of estrogen during menopause may potentially be troublesome.  The provision of resveratrol to ovary-absent rats reversed the adverse effects upon blood pressure and improved bone strength as well.

Menopausal bone loss

Menopausal bone loss is not due to lack of calcium.  It is due to lack of estrogen.

There is question whether bone-hardening drugs are beneficial. Post-menopausal women taking bone hardening drugs prescribed in the US are plagued by side effects: bone pain, fatigue, fever and flu-like symptoms, regularity.

Calcium supplementation is fraught with problems for pre-and post-menopausal women.  Calcium supplements modestly increase the risk for heart and blood vessel disease in post-menopausal women.

Estrogen replacement is an effective approach to maintain bone among post-menopausal females, but the reported risks (increase for breast cancer, high blood pressure and cardiovascular problems) have scared women away from estrogen replacement.

The number of hip fractures in Japan (1992 data) is less than half that in the U.S. that has a larger population.  The dietary consumption of calcium in Japan is ~400-500 milligrams per day compared to the US which is more than double that figure.

One of the factors associated with higher bone density in Japan is phyto-estrogen consumption, primarily fermented soy as miso soup, tempeh or natto.

Just 150 milligrams of resveratrol has been reported to increase bone density among post-menopausal females.

Alternative to estrogen

Estrogen-like molecules in plants (phyto-estrogens) are documented to reduce hot flashes and other symptoms of menopause.

At very low concentrations, obtainable via dietary consumption, resveratrol has been shown to inhibit breast cancer and reverse the breast cancer-promoting effects of omega-6 oils (example: corn oil).

A drawback of phyto-estrogens is, like estrogen, they have growth properties, i.e. increase risk for growing tumors (example: breast cancer).

The red wine molecule resveratrol is the safest of all phytoestrogens.

When phyto-estrogens were tested (genistein (soy), equol (soy), daidzein (soy), naringenin (grapefruit), coumestrol (soy, Brussels’ sprouts, clover), Pueraria Mirifica (herb from Thailand), resveratrol (grapes, mulberries, wine), all of them stimulated cell growth except resveratrol.