Say Cheese! Roquefort May Keep Hearts Healthy

It's old, it's moldy, it's blue, it smells — and some say it may hold a key to health and longevity.

It's Roquefort cheese, and researchers from a biotech company are taking a second look at the creamy culinary delight and its alleged health properties, even though (like many cheeses) it's notoriously high in fat and sodium.

Researchers at Lycotech, a biotech company in Cambridge, England, hope the anti-inflammatory compounds in Roquefort cheese can someday be extracted to create drugs that fight cardiovascular disease or, perhaps, be used as an anti-aging cream or in other beauty products.

The research has yet to be published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

Even so, the researchers' discovery may also help to explain the so-called "French Paradox," which has baffled medical researchers for years. The French — despite indulging in a diet that's rich in fats, sodium, alcohol and other dietary no-no's — seem to enjoy some of the best health in Europe.

French women, for example, have some of the highest life expectancies in Europe, at 85.3 years, The Telegraph reports. British women, by comparison, have an average life expectancy of just 82.3.

The French Paradox has also been linked to a number of other factors, including the less-sedentary lifestyle of the French and their consumption of red wine, which contains resveratrol, a compound that might have some anti-inflammatory or other beneficial properties.

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Marc Lallanilla has been a science writer and health editor at About.com and a producer with ABCNews.com. His freelance writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and TheWeek.com. Marc has a Master's degree in environmental planning from the University of California, Berkeley, and an undergraduate degree from the University of Texas at Austin.