Depressed? Go for red grapes and wine

A new study has found that red grapes and wine can help ease depression.

University of South Carolina School of Medicine's study found that resveratrol, a natural anti-inflammatory agent found in the skin of red grapes, can prevent inflammation as well as depression-related behaviors in rodents exposed to a social stress.

Susan K. Wood said that the research is very relevant to today's society because it investigates potential treatments for people with an increased susceptibility to depression and related disorders that arise due to social stress.

Wood added they hope their findings will encourage scientists who are running clinical trials to test the effectiveness of natural anti-inflammatory agents on depression, which is currently an understudied area.

Resveratrol appears to knock down inflammation throughout the body, said researcher Julie Finnell, adding that they found that administering resveratrol blocks the inflammation normally seen in animals undergoing the bullying stress and brings it to control levels.

In addition to being naturally present in the skin of red grapes and in red wine, resveratrol is also sold as supplement. Studies have shown that the natural agent might be responsible for red wine's ability to prevent blood vessel damage and reduce LDL cholesterol, and experiments using high doses of resveratrol in animals have suggested it might help protect from obesity and diabetes.