Purple Corn (HerbalGram)
Powerful Antioxidant, the most abundant anthocyanin.

SUGGESTED FOR:

- Hypertense, Reduce High Blood Pressure
- Cholesterol
- Obesity.

PROPERTIES:

- Hipotensive effect.
- Lipotropic effect.
- Power Antioxidant

Purple Corn has the property to reduce high blood pressure and with its higher antioxidant capacity and antiradical kinetics than blueberries and higher or similar anthocyanin and phenolic contents.

Oxidative stress is described as a state in which there is an excess of oxygen-based free radicals. To avoid the damage they can cause to cells, the body produces antioxidants to inactivate these free radicals. If they prove insufficient, however, the body suffers from oxidation of lipids, proteins, and nucleotide bases. In models of oxidative stress using oxidative injury to the liver, male rats fed a diet containing 0.2% C3G (2 g/kg of feed) for 2 weeks beforehand showed significantly less liver injury compared to the control group.21 A similar study in rats fed C3G in liquid form (0.9 mmol/kg) also found significant hepatoprotective effects.22

Anti-inflammatory Capabilities

In a study on the anti-inflammatory potential of C3G, male rats administered the anthocyanin orally in liquid form (0.9 mmol/kg) prior to chemically-induced acute inflammation showed significantly less inflammation and significantly attenuated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-6, interleukin-? , and tumor necrosis factor-? , and inducible nitric oxide [iNOS] expression) and nitric oxide (a free radical).23 Based on these results, it is possible that this plant pigment may also suppress the inflammatory response in diseases marked with inflammation.

Preventing Cancer.

Could the anthocyanin pigment also help prevent some types of cancer? That question was put to the test in rats first treated with a carcinogen (1,2-dimethylhydrazine) and then fed a diet containing a known environmental carcinogen (PhIP or 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine) that also targets the mammary gland, prostate, and large intestine in rats and causes colorectal cancer. Incidentally, the carcinogen used in the study, known as a heterocyclic amine, is the most abundant of around 20 other types found in cooked meats and fish. Both the early signs of colorectal cancers and the numbers of malignant and benign tumors that formed in the colons of rats that had the purple pigment in their diet (5% of feed for 32 weeks; a nontoxic dose based on previous carcinogenicity studies of PCC) were significantly reduced, and there were no adverse effects. The authors of the study note that extract or juices of plants that contain high amounts of anthocyanins have previously been reported to inhibit mutagenesis induced by heterocyclic amines

Colon cancer is the second most deadly of all forms of cancer. The one that affects the colon is more frequent in women, and the rectal cancer is more common in men. In Nagoya University, Japan, a group of researchers from the School of Medicine has demonstrated that the pigment in purple corn impedes the development of cancer in the colon. In laboratory experiments, sample groups received food mixed with a natural cancerigenic substance which is found in the charred parts of roasted meat and fish, and another group also received 5% pigment of purple corn. In the group that was fed the cancer causing substance, 85% developed colon cancer, compared with only 40% that also received the pigment.

Research.

The results of several epidemiologic studies indicate that regular consumption of foods rich in polyphenolic compounds is associated with reduced risk of developing cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. Recent experimental studies in both animals and humans have shown that increasing polyphenol intake can protect LDL cholesterol from becoming oxidized (a key step in developing atherosclerosis), lower blood pressure in hypertensive subjects, reduce the tendency of the blood to clot and elevate total antioxidant capacity of the blood. After they are swallowed, anthocianins are easily detected in the blood. This was explained by Passamonti & col. (2003) who demonstrated that the stomach participates actively in the absorption of these compounds.

In a pre-clinical study, Tsuda & col. (2003) studied the effects of purple corn on obesity and diabetes. compared two sample groups. They consumed a diet rich in fats during 12 weeks, but one of the groups also received purple corn pigments. Compared with the control group the group consuming anthocyaninins didn’t gain any weight, nor suffered hypertrophy in the adiposites of the fat tissues, didn’t show hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, hyperleptinemia, or increase in levels of the genetic codes that produce the factor or tumoral necrosis or the enzymes related to the synthesis of fatty acids and trilglicerol. In comparison, the group that didn’t receive the extract and ate only a fat rich diet, showed an increase of more than 100% in all those parameters. Thus, there are good nutritional and biochemical reasons to use the anthocianins present in purple corn, with obvious benefits for the prevention of obesity and diabetes.

It is known that the colon and rectum cancer is the second most deadly of all forms of cancer. The one that affects the colon is more frequent in women, and the rectal cancer is more common in men. In Nagoya University, Japan, a group of researchers from the School of Medicine has demonstrated that the pigment in purple corn impedes the development of cancer in the colon. In laboratory experiments, sample groups received food mixed with a natural cancerigenic substance which is found in the charred parts of roasted meat and fish, and another group also received 5% pigment of purple corn. In the group that was fed the cancer causing substance, 85% developed colon cancer, compared with only 40% that also received the pigment.

Anti-tumoral
Most flavonoids have anti-cancer properties.

Anti-oxidant
Digging deeper, the most abundant anthocyanin found in purple corn, induce the cellular antioxidant system.

1. FDA, Dept. of Health and Human Services. Code of Federal Regulations. Part 73. Listing of Color Additives Exempt from Certification. Sec. 73.169. Sec. 73.170. April 1, 2003.

2. Hagiwara A, Miyashita K, Nakanishi T, Sano M, Tamano S, Kadota T, Koda T, Nakamura M, Imaida K, Ito N, Shirai T. Pronounced inhibition by a natural anthocyanin, purple corn color, of 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazol[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP)-associated colorectal carcinogenesis in male F344 rats pretreated with 1,2-dimethylhydrazine. Cancer Lett. 2001;171:17-25.

4 . Tsuda T, Horio F, Osawa T. Cyanidin 3-O-b-D-glucoside suppresses nitric oxide production during zymosan treatment in rats. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol. 2002;48(4):305-310.

5. Tsuda T, Horio F, Osawa T. Dietary cyanidin 3-O-? -D-glucoside increases ex vivo oxidation resistance of serum in rats. Lipids. 1998;33(6):583-588.

6. Tsuda T, Horio F, Uchida K, Aoki H, Osawa T. Dietary cyanidin 3-O-? -D-glucoside-rich purple corn color prevents obesity and ameliorates hyperglycemia in mice. J Nutr. 2003;133(7):2125-2130.

7. Tsuda T, Ueno Y, Aoki H, et al. Anthocyanin enhances adipocytokine secretion and adipocyte-specific gene expression in isolated rat adipocytes. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2004;316:149-157.

8. Fruebis J, Tsao TS, Javorschi S, Ebbets-Reed D, Erickson MR, Yen FT, Bihain BE, Lodish HF. Proteolytic cleavage product of 30-kDa adipocyte complement-related protein increases fatty acid oxidation in muscle and causes weight loss in mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2001;98:2005-2010.