The best food sources for resveratrol are not that great.  The compound is present in very low amounts in peanuts, berries, red grapes and red wine.  When self-proclaimed experts suggest that you can get all of the antioxidants that your body needs every day through diet alone, they cannot be talking about this one.

Within the cells of the human body, you will find a variety of different molecules and anti aging substances.  Some of them cause cellular aging and disease.  Some, like amyloids, are known to be present during disease, but it is not known if they causes or results of the disease.  To keep all of these molecules under control, there must be balance.

Antioxidants balance the activity of free radical molecules.  If free radicals get out of control, they damage the cell’s DNA and that eventually causes cancerous growths or the death of the cell.  It is not possible to get enough life extending antioxidants through diet alone, because our food is not as nutritious as it once was.

But, even if you tried to include the best food sources for resveratrol in your daily diet, you still would not get the antioxidant benefits.  In order to provide that benefit, it must be able to enter the blood stream.  As it passes through the digestive system, the molecule is changed by stomach acid to an inactive form and then the liver breaks it down into its component parts.

The only effective means to increase human blood serum levels of trans-resveratrol (the active form) is to take a supplement with an enteric coating.  The liquid, powder and veggie-cap supplements won’t work.

There are a variety of nutrients in the best food sources for resveratrol.  So, if you do decide that diet alone is the best choice for you, there is no reason not to include them.  Peanuts are good for your heart.  Red wine is too.  Grapes and berries contain other beneficial antioxidants.  But, if your only reason for eating those foods is to get the health benefits of trans-resveratrol, don’t bother.

Researchers have determined that the heart healthy benefits of red wine could not be due to the resveratrol-content.  They simply don’t know why it helps protect the heart, but they do know that the resveratrol-content is too low and the bio-availability of the compound is too low.  So, there are two things indicating that this is not “the” beneficial component of red wine.

Supplements do not usually contain the best food sources for resveratrol, but an extract from a medicinal root.  The root has a much higher content.  If you do decide that supplements are the way to go, look for one that contains a 50% trans-resveratrol extract and has an enteric coating.

You might also consider one that contains lots of other antioxidants from berries and plants, because of the different health benefits they provide.  Turmeric, for example, is an anti-amyloid, but it too must be protected from stomach acid.  Include the best food sources for resveratrol in your diet, if you like, but I recommend supplementation. If you have a minute to spare, please take a look at my website now.