Influence of Age and Dose on the Effect of Resveratrol for Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Several clinical trials have suggested that resveratrol has hypoglycemic properties; however, there are other studies in which such an effect has not been observed. Methods: We carried out a systematic search in several databases; seventeen studies were selected for the systematic review and fifteen were included in the meta-analysis. Results: Resveratrol decreases glucose levels in subjects aged 45-59 years at doses <250 mg/day (-8.64 mg/dL, p < 0.00001), 250-500 mg/day (-22.24 mg/dL, p = 0.0003), and 500-1000 mg/day (-28.40 mg/dL, p = 0.0008), while in subjects older than 60 years, it only decreases with doses of 250-500 mg/day. Likewise, HbA1c improved in subjects aged 45-59 years with doses of 250-500 mg (-0.60%, p < 0.00001), but not in subjects older than 60 years. Insulin levels improved in subjects aged 45-59 years with doses < 250 mg/day (-0.80 mIU/L, p = 0.0003) and doses of 250-500 mg/day (-5.0 mIU/L, p = 0.0003), although in subjects older than 60 years, they only improved with doses of 250-500 mg/day (-1.79 mIU/L, p = 0.01). On the other hand, HOMA-IR only improved in subjects older than 60 years with doses of 250-500 mg/day (-0.40, p = 0.01). Conclusions: Resveratrol has a statistically significant dose-response effect on glucose concentrations, HbA1c, and insulin levels; however, there is not enough scientific evidence to propose a therapeutic dose.