Comparison of Health Benefits

is that the oral bioavailability of resveratrol is only 20 percent, while pterosti lbene reaches 80 percent. But it’s important to note that these percentages r efer to the combined total of resveratrol plus resveratrol sulfate, and pterostil bene plus pterostilbene sulfate. It’s even more important to note that these percentages came from a study that was conducted in rats rather than huma ns.

The other oft-cited comparison is that the half-life of pterostilbene is seven ti mes longer than that of resveratrol. This statistic comes from two studies: On e reported that resveratrol had a half-life of 14 minutes,and the other report ed that pterostilbene had a half-life of 105 minutes. Again, these were precli nical studies that were conducted not in humans but in rabbits, rats, and mic

e.

Several unanswered questions remain. We don’t know whether the conjugated metabolites of resveratrol and pterostilbene have biological activity at the tis sue level (there is some evidence of activity, albeit less than free resveratrol). Also, it’s unknown whether the bioavailability data on pterostilbene from ani mal studies can be translated to humans.

Many researchers and clinicians are taking the limited data we have so far a bout the bioavailability of pterostilbene and running with it. Based on the stu dies mentioned above, pterostilbene has gained a reputation for being a mor e potent and bioavailable form of resveratrol.

Resveratrol has been extensively researched. Experimental studies show that r esveratrol modulates numerous molecular mechanisms at the cellular level. It interacts, for example, with cellular pathways related to healthy inflammatory balance, apoptosis, and autophagy. It also interacts with pathways associated with aging and longevity, such as telomeres and cell senescence.

Despite its low bioavailability, there is abundant evidence for resveratrol’s abili ty to promote health in humans. Randomized, controlled trials have shown th at resveratrol supplementation supports healthy weight management, blood-sug ar metabolism, cardiovascular function, mood, healthy inflammatory balance a