Saturday Quack – Red Wine Pills

We all know by now that red wine is good for your health – in moderation (2 glasses a day for men, one for women). The ‘active ingredient’ has been postulated to be a substance called resveratrol, which has been linked to increased lifespan in mice. So it’s not surprising that sales of red wine supplements (products that contain resveratrol) have increased 300% in the last year.

The problem is that most, if not all, these supplements contain so little resveratrol that the contents are probably equal to a teaspoonful of wine or less. ConsumerLab.com has tested 13 resveratrol products, and found that, compared to the amount given to mice, they supplements contain relatively little resveratrol. Worse: several of them contained far less than was claimed on their label.

It seems to me that those of us who want to take advantage of red wine’s health benefits can’t do better than consuming a glass or two of wine each evening. Taking a resveratrol supplement at an uncertain dose seems like introducing too many unknowns, and isn’t nearly as much fun.