Yes. There are a number of resveratrol products on the market as dietary supplements, but as with many such supplements, these products have not been rigorously tested or approved by the US Food and Drug Administration. Researchers at Sirtris Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge hope to have a real resveratrol drug (not a supplement) on the market to combat Type 2 diabetes and other illnesses by 2012.
Resveratrol has been shown by researchers at Harvard Medical School and elsewhere to prevent mice fed a high-calorie diet from developing signs of incipient diabetes and to prolong life. Scientists suspect, but have not proved, that resveratrol activates an enzyme called SIRT1 that may forestall the effects of aging. Scientists theorized that the enzyme may increase the number or efficiency of mitochondria, the tiny organelles inside cells that produce energy. Red wine is famous for containing resveratrol, but the amounts are so tiny that it would take hundreds of bottles a day to get enough resveratrol to see the same benefits in humans that have been shown in mice, said molecular biologist David Sinclair, the Harvard scientist who studies resveratrol and was the co-founder of Sirtris.
Bill Sardi, president of Resveratrol Partners, LLC, which makes Longevinex,, a resveratrol supplement, said his company is working on human safety studies now. While he said he believes resveratrol supplements are safe, he suggested that people not take them along with medications because they may result in higher levels of certain medications in the bloodstream.
Mark Holman, vice president for marketing for NFI Consumer Products, which makes Resvinatrol Complete, said that company, too, is continuing to study its products.
Bottom line? Caveat emptor, as usual. Since some supplements now on the market contain other ingredients that have not been fully tested in combination with resveratrol and since the animal studies at Harvard suggest high doses may be necessary to achieve benefits, it’s probably too soon to take resveratrol supplements. Taking high doses of insufficiently tested supplements is just too risky.