NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Sep 29 - Consumption of resveratrol and white wine is associated with higher levels of lung function, researchers from The Netherlands report online August 28 in the European Respiratory Journal Express. Dr. H. M. Boezen from University of Groningen expressed surprise at "the fact that corrected for potential confounders like SES (socioeconomic status) we still saw an effect of resveratrol and white wine on lung function, even at low doses."
In their population-based study, Dr. Boezen and colleagues analyzed the effects of red and white wine and resveratrol on FEV1, FVC, and FEV1/FVC in 3,224 individuals and assessed the association of SIRT1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on lung function in 2,542 individuals.
Resveratrol has been shown to induce SIRT1 activity, and this has been proposed to account for at least some of its anti-inflammatory activity. Although touted as a possible treatment for conditions ranging from asthma to cancer, resveratrol has yet to prove effective in large clinical trials.
In the new study, resveratrol intake was associated with higher FVC levels, and white wine consumption was associated with higher FEV1 levels, whereas there was no association between red wine intake and lung function.
White wine consumption (but not resveratrol intake) was associated with better lung function only in heavy smokers.
"This observation suggests that white wine might be efficient in the detoxification of molecules derived from cigarette smoke that elevate oxidative or inflammatory burden in the lung, and thus the positive associations of white wine intake with lung function become more easily apparent in smokers as compared to never-smokers," the investigators say.
In studies of FEV1 decline over time, there was no association between intake of resveratrol, white wine, or red wine and the change in FEV1.
Moreover, none of the genetic variations in SIRT1 was significantly associated with FEV1 or FVC or with resveratrol intake.
"While we found that resveratrol intake was associated with a higher FVC level, its association with FEV1 level was not significant," the researchers note. "Similarly, we did not observe significant associations of resveratrol intake with the presence of airway obstruction. Therefore, the relevance of the observed association in relation to respiratory disorders other than COPD needs to be further addressed."
"Our study shows that white wine intake and not red wine intake, the major dietary resveratrol source, is associated with a lower risk for airway obstruction and with higher FEV1 levels, both indices of COPD," they add. "This is of great importance given the fact that reduced lung function is a marker for cardiovascular related mortality."
Concluded Dr. Boezen: "Consumption of resveratrol in low doses as well as white wine (but remarkably not red wine) appears at least not to harm level of lung function."
SOURCE: bit.ly/p2yk96
The FEV1/FVC ratio, also called Tiffeneau index, is a calculated ratio used in the diagnosis of obstructive and restrictive lung disease.