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Researchers find red wine can reduce risk
of prostate cancer
by
Rosanne Fohn, Communications Coordinator,
Southwest Oncology Group
Wouldn’t it be nice if something as simple as a glass of wine could help
prevent prostate cancer? That’s what a study from the International Journal
of Cancer suggests. “We found that men who
consumed four or more glasses of red wine per week reduced their risk of
prostate cancer by 50%,” said Janet L. Stanford, Ph.D. Stanford is senior
author of “Alcohol consumption and risk of prostate cancer in middle-aged
men”. The study appeared in the September 2004 edition of the journal. Red wine seemed to be
most effective in preventing aggressive types of cancer, Stanford said.
Researchers found about 60 percent fewer cases of the aggressive types of cancer
in men who drank four or more 4-ounce glasses of wine a week. Stanford’s
comments come from a press release issued by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research
Center where the study was conducted. Dr. Scott Lippman,
Study Coordinator for the Selenium and Vitamin E Cancer Prevention Trial
(SELECT), discussed the red wine study at the Fall 2004 Southwest Oncology Group
Meeting. “This is one of only a few studies that show a strong connection
between drinking liquor and the prevention of prostate cancer,” he said. “This
is a small study. While the results are preliminary they do show some promise,
especially if other studies confirm the results.” The study compared red
wine, white wine, beer and hard liquor, but only red wine seemed to prevent
cancer. Researchers think the beneficial ingredient in red wine is resveratrol.
There are high levels of resveratrol in the skin of red grapes. Smaller amounts
also are found in white grapes, peanuts, and raspberries. The study showed that
the chance of prostate cancer went down 6 % with each glass of red wine the men
drank during a given week. However, the results were not as positive when the
men drank more than a moderate amount of red wine. Stanford said that it is
hard to encourage people to drink more than a small amount of alclhol because of
problems that can come from heavy drinking. These problems can include a higher
overall risk of cancer, the chance of an injury and social problems. “But for men who
already are consuming alcohol, I think the results of this study suggest that
modest consumption of red wine, about for to eight 4-ounce drinks per week, is
the level at which you might receive benefit. Clearly other studies show that
more than that may have adverse effects on your health.”
What is
resveratrol?
According to the National Cancer
Institute (NCI) resveratrol is a
type of antioxidant compound
found in grape skins and seeds.
This compound helps the
grapevine defend itself against
disease, infection, stress, and
injury.
Red wine contains higher levels
of resveratrol than white wine.
When white wine is made, the
grape skins are removed after
the grapes are crushed.
This is not the case when red
wine is made. When the red
wine ferments, the antioxidant
compounds from both the skin and
the seeds become concentrated in
the wine.
Scientists are still in the
early stages
of testing the effects of red
wine on cancer in humans.
The types of cancer being
studied include leukemia, skin,
breast and prostate cancer.
The NCI cautions that drinking
large amounts of alcoholic
beverages may increase the
overall risk of some types of
cancer.
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