The antioxidant resveratrol, found in red wine, appears to prevent pre-fat cells called preadipocytes from proliferating and turning into fat cells, German researchers say.

WebMD reported June 18 that researcher Martin Wabitch, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Ulm previously demonstrated that resveratrol protected lab mice from health problems associated with obesity by mimicking the effects of caloric restriction.

In the new study, Wabitch and colleagues showed that the antioxidant actually reduced the number of human pre-fat cells, while an untreated sample more than doubled in number.

The findings were presented at ENDO 08, The Endocrine Society's 90th annual meeting in San Francisco.