Resveratrol for Lifespan Extension
Resveratrol extended lifespan in simple organisms but failed to replicate in mammals at dietary doses; human data show modest metabolic effects at best.
Overview
Verdict
How It Works
Dosing & Protocol
Typical dose
- Recommended dose
- 500 mg–1 g/day trans-resveratrol with fat (if used for metabolic purposes).
- Expected timeframe
- Not established
Protocol
- form
- Not applicable
- duration
- Not applicable
- co factor
- Evidence indicates no effect. Resveratrol extended lifespan in yeast, nematodes and fruit flies in early reports, and Baur and colleagues found improved survival in mice fed a high-fat diet - a finding widely reported as lifespan extension when it was rescue from diet-induced harm. The decisive test came from the National Institute on Aging Interventions Testing Program, which uses genetically heterogeneous mice across three independent sites: resveratrol produced no lifespan extension in normally-fed mice. Rapamycin, tested in the same programme, did. Several foundational resveratrol papers from one laboratory were subject to research misconduct findings, and the SIRT1 activation mechanism was challenged as an assay artefact.
- titration
- Not applicable
- starting dose
- Not applicable. No dose of resveratrol has been shown to extend lifespan in mammals on a normal diet
Evidence
What the studies say
Resveratrol supplementation and lifespan or healthspan markers in humans: a systematic review
Berman AY, Motechin RA, Wiesenfeld MY +1 more
No human trial has demonstrated an effect of resveratrol on lifespan
Safety
Caveats
High doses cause GI upset. Interacts with blood thinners. The red-wine longevity narrative is not supported — alcohol itself is a net negative for lifespan.
Less likely to help if
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