According to a recent article in the UK magazine, Drinks Business, researchers from Purdue University, Indiana in America claim they’ve discovered a compound piceatannol, which is present in red wine that blocks immature fat cells’ ability to develop and grow.

The findings have been published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

Piceatannol which is similar in structure to resveratrol, a well-documented heart-healthy agent in red wine, is also thought to help protect the body against cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases.

The new findings indicate that in humans, piceatannol is converted from resveratrol after consumption and could also play an important role in controlling obesity, after evidence that the compound acted as a fat blaster in young cells.

Researcher Kee-Hong Kim said in the article that “Piceatannol actually alters the timing of gene expressions, gene functions and insulin action during adipogenesis, the process in which early stage fat cells become mature fat cells”.

The compound blocks the pathways necessary for immature fat cells to mature and grow.

The new study said the compound was also found in grapes, blueberries and passion fruit.