Resveratrol Doesn't Improve Metabolic Risk Factors in Obese

FRIDAY, Nov. 30 (HealthDay News) -- For obese men, supplementation with resveratrol, a compound found in red wine, is not associated with improvements in insulin sensitivity, blood pressure, or body composition, according to a study published online Nov. 28 in Diabetes.

Noting that, in animal and in vitro studies, resveratrol reverts metabolic risk factors, Morten M. Poulsen, M.D., from the Aarhus University Hospital in Denmark, and colleagues randomly assigned 24 obese but otherwise healthy men to four weeks of resveratrol or placebo treatment. Before and after treatment, metabolic assessments, including glucose turnover and insulin sensitivity (hyperinsulinemic euglycemic clamp), were performed.

The researchers found that, in both groups, there was a nonsignificant deterioration in insulin sensitivity. There was no change in endogenous glucose production or the turnover and oxidation rates of glucose. There was also no effect of resveratrol supplementation on blood pressure; resting energy expenditure; lipid oxidation rates; ectopic or visceral fat content; or inflammatory and metabolic biomarkers.

"The lack of effect disagrees with persuasive data obtained from rodent models and raises doubt about the justification of resveratrol as a human nutritional supplement in metabolic disorders," the authors write.

The study was partially funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

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