GRAPES and wine contain a natural antidote to cancer, a discovery that could help explain the so-called ”French paradox” – the lower rates of heart disease and cancer of nations like France, Italy and Spain.
John Pezzuto, of the Illinois College of Pharmacy in Chicago, and other scientists report in the American journal Science that they tested a plant substance called resveratrol and found it showed cancer- preventing activity in three major stages of tumour formation.
They found high quantities of resveratrol in grapes and fresh grape skin, and up to 3mg a litre in red wine. ”Appreciable amounts are also found in white and rose wines,” they report.
Resveratrol acts as an antioxidant and antimutagen, blocking other cell-changing agents from starting cancer. It also acts in a number of ways to stop the promotion of cancer, and it works to stop the progress of human leukemia cell formation. Cancer is the largest cause of death worldwide, taking one life in five.
”Resveratrol merits investigation as a potential cancer chemopreventive agent,” the scientists conclude.
Nobody knows for certain what resveratrol does in plants. It has been found in at least 72 species, including mulberries, peanuts and grapes. It is thought to be one of a class called phytoalexins, produced by plants when they are stressed by fungal attack.
Wine – in particular, red wine – is al- ready known to offer some kind of protection against heart disease. The scientists say this may be because it prevents the build-up of platelets in the blood.
The latest discovery supports what herbalists and botanists say: many plants contain useful and as yet unidentified agents for the treatment and prevention of disease – including cardiovascular diseases and cancer.
And it reinforces the new interest in low- fat and high-fibre diets rich in fresh fruit and vegetables as a way of reducing cancer risk. The United States National Cancer Institute believes that diet is responsible for 35% of all cancers.
But Pezzuto is not, for the time being, recommending chemotherapy by the claret glass or a prophylactic pinot noir. Alcohol is dangerous in other ways. Grapes and grape juices would be a healthier choice.
”We are a bit concerned,” said Pezzuto. ”Obviously this is related to the so-called French paradox, with wine consumption being inversely related to heart problems.
”The good news is that we have things in wine and other grape products that can possibly prevent cancer. The other side of the coin is that there tends to be a positive correlation between cancer and alcohol, with breast cancer, for example.
”So at best what we have here is some kind of neutralising effect.”
Pharmaceutical companies screen tens of thousands of flowering plants a year for medically promising compounds. More than 40000 such ”phyto chemicals” have been identified, including:
* The Madagascar rosy periwinkle is the source of two major cancer drugs.
* The Pacific yew yields taxol, a breast- cancer drug.
* Garlic contains anti-thrombotic compounds.
* Hawthorn and lime blossom give flavonoids useful in heart treatments.
* Broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower and other brassicas contain an ”amazing array” of chemicals.
* Tomatoes, a source of beta-carotene, also contain lycopene to protect from carcinogens.
* Indian snakeroot has reserpine to lower blood pressure.
* Meadowsweet, which 99 years ago led to aspirin, was last year also identified as a weapon against bowel cancer.