Getting the balance right!

I read an interesting article today about a substance called 'Resveratrol'. 

It's some kind of a scientific molecule (why do all those scientific things end in 'ol'?) that I have never heard of before.  So, being curious, I looked it up, and according to Wikipedia:

"Resveratrol is a stilbenoid, a type of natural phenol (there's that 'ol' again!), and a phytoalexin produced naturally by several plants when under attack by pathogens such as bacteria or fungi."

Does that make it any clearer for you?  No?  Well it didn't for me either!

So I went back to the article hoping for enlightenment.  Apparently, as in all good research, they fed this compound to a group of ageing mice, and at the end of the study, the mice showed a huge improvement in their sense of balance.  (Where do they come up with this stuff?)  But alas, the ageing mice that were not fed this wonder molecule continued to stagger and stumble.  A stumbling mouse!  I have never seen one of those, the only mice I ever see seem to be very nimble as they are darting across my kitchen floor and disappearing through some space that I didn't even know was there!  Anyway, according to Dr Jane Cavenaugh, in some university in Pittsburgh, who is conducting the study, Resveratrol "could decrease some motor deficiencies seen in our ageing population and would therefore increase an ageing persons quality of life, and decrease their risks of hospitalisation due to slips and falls".  Excellent result!!  A big thank you to the mice!

Oh I forgot to tell you that this substance is found in the skin of red grapes, therefore by deduction, its also found in red wine, and I didn't need to be a scientist to figure that out.  So, basically, in this study, they got the old mice drunk on red wine and, eureka, they could run around the room without falling over!! Where as the poor old mice that were left to drink the Ribena couldn't make it across the room without falling over. 

Well hurrah, at last a study that makes sense!  Now, thanks to this fantastic research, I know where I have been going wrong...  You see, I only drink WHITE wine.  So now, to get my balance right (eh...not that I'm ageing or anything), I am going to have to change my tipple and start drinking the red stuff.  A whole new world of Merlot's Shiraz's and Chianti's could be open to me here, and you know how much I like to research...

Oh it also said in the article that to get the benefits of Resveratrol from red wine, you would have to drink about 700 4oz glasses a day....

...I better get started...