Abstracts are available by clicking here, here, and here.

HONOLULU, Dec. 17 - When you're planning for that Super Bowl party next month, be sure to include a six-pack of your favorite antioxidants. That's right, antioxidants! Turns out that beer - in moderation, of course - is chock-full of healthy stuff that can reduce the risk of cataracts and heart disease, according to research presented here today at the 2000 International Chemical Congress of Pacific Basin Societies.

The weeklong scientific meeting, held once every five years, is hosted by the American Chemical Society, in conjunction with its counterparts in Australia, Canada, Japan and New Zealand.

Researchers in Canada and the United States presented results of animal studies showing that beer, especially the darker ales and stouts, may reduce the incidence of atherosclerosis and cataracts by as much as 50 percent.

Darker beers have more antioxidants than the lighter lager beers, according to Canadian researchers John Trevithick, Ph.D., and Maurice Hirst, Ph.D., of the University of Western Ontario, and Joe Vinson, Ph.D., of the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania. The Canadian team focused on determining why antioxidants in beer seem to help reduce the risk of cataracts, especially in diabetics. Vinson investigated beer's beneficial effect in reducing the risk of heart disease.

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Contact: Charmayne Marsh
y_marsh@acs.org
808-944-6381
American Chemical Society
16-Dec-2000