Abstract
Many phenolics found naturally in food have the capacity to show beneficial effects at low doses and toxicity at high doses in in vitro systems. Resveratrol is no exception. Nonetheless, in the nutritional context, the evidence that resveratrol shows hormetic effects is very limited and is of questionable relevance given its rapid metabolism in the stomach. Hormesis can only be confirmed if evidence for a J- or U-shaped dose-response relationship is found in in vivo doses that are relevant to human intakes.