article-1043077-0122671A000004B0-807_233x355

A drug that holds back the ageing process and prevents cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's, could be on sale within five years, scientists claim.

They say it could also be used to stop the onset of diabetes, reinvigorate patients and give them more stamina.

The drug is made up of chemicals that mimic resveratrol, a compound which is found in the skins of red grapes.

Previous research has shown resveratrol reduces the impact of a high-fat diet, doubles stamina and extends lifespan in mice.

However, to get the same benefits, a human would have to drink around 1,000 bottles of wine.

Now a pharmaceutical firm has developed a pill based on two chemicals that act in the same way.

In one study on mice, published last year, the drug was found to reverse the symptoms of diabetes. It was also shown to cut sensitivity to insulin, the chemical that helps control blood sugar levels in the body, and which is in short supply in diabetes sufferers.

The first clinical trials on humans are now under way, and the developers - Sirtris Pharmaceuticals - believe it could also help prevent diseases including cancer, heart disease and Alzheimer's.

David Sinclair, co-founder of Sirtris, said last year: 'The excitement here is that we're not talking about red wine any more. We're talking about real drugs.

'We will make a drug to treat one disease but it will, as an added bonus, protect you against most of the other diseases of the Western world.

'One of the drawbacks of resveratrol is that the doses need to be large.

'Now this paper says you can reduce it into a little pill taken once a day. The chances of success in humans is estimated at 80 to 90 per cent.'

Resveratrol is currently sold as a health supplement, and is primarily derived from Japanese Knotweed.

(From an article in Mail Online)

P.S I am pleased that they have found a use for the notorious Japanese Knotweed that is overgrowing our river banks, forcing out all native species.