Purple corn, a variety of Zea mays, is an Andean crop from low valleys locally called maiz morado. Purple corn can be found mostly in Peru, where it is cultivated in the coast, as well as in lands almost ten thousand feet high. There are different varieties of purple corn, and all of them originated from an ancestral line called “Kculli”, still cultivated in Peru. The Kculli line is very old, and ancient objects in the shape of these particular ears of corn have been found in archeological sites at least 2,500 years old in places in the central coast, as well as among the ceramics of the “Mochica” culture.

 

Purple corn contains substantial amounts of phenolics and anthocyanins, among other phytochemicals. Its main colorant is cianidin-3-b-glucosa. People of the Andes make a refreshing drink from purple corn called "chicha morada" which is now recognized as a nutritive powerhouse due to its phenolic content. Phenolics are known to have many bioactive and functional properties. Research shows that crops with the highest total phenolic and anthocyanin content also have the highest antioxidant activity.

 

Anthocyaninins are a type of complex flavonoid that produce blue, purple or red colors. Anthocyaninins encourage connective tissue regeneration and are anti-inflammatory. They promote blood flow and reduce cholesterol, in addition to being antioxidants. Anthocyaninins seem to stabilize and protect capillaries from oxidative damage and have been shown to stabilize connective tissue, promote collagen formation, improve microcirculation and help protect blood vessels from oxidative damage.

 

Purple Corn has higher antioxidant capacity and antiradical kinetics than blueberries and higher or similar anthocyanin and phenolic contents.

 

Detox Your World supplies pesticide-free purple corn as cob kernels, ground food powder and an atmomized purple corn extract powder with 6% anthocyaninin concentration.

 

 

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 abnormal cell growths. 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, comparing 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 abnormal cell growth is the second most deadly of all forms of abnormal cell growth. The one that affects the colon is more frequent in women, and the rectal abnormal cell growth 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 abnormal cell growth in the colon. In laboratory experiments, sample groups received food mixed with a natural carcinogenic 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 carcinogenic substance, 85% developed colon abnormal cell growth, compared with only 40% that also received the pigment.