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Studies have found that eating foods rich in anthocyanins, like red and blue fruits, vegetables, and tubers, can reduce your risk of getting type 2 diabetes. Anthocyanins are special pigments that are good for both your energy levels and gut health. Plus, these benefits get an extra boost if the anthocyanins in the food you ate were linked to an acyl group (a kind of related chemical) on their sugar parts.
You can find a lot of colorful type of compounds called acylated anthocyanins in purple potatoes, purple sweet potatoes, radishes, purple carrots and red cabbages. On the other hand, bilberries and mulberries contain mostly nonacylated anthocyanins. Acylated anthocyanins aren’t absorbed easily during digestion but they help reduce your chances of getting diabetes more than nonacylated anthocyanins.
Kang Chen, who is a Postdoctoral Researcher from the University of Turku in Finland, said that studies have shown acylation affects how anthocyanins (which are certain chemicals) get processed and absorbed by our bodies.
Acylated anthocyanins are better than non-acylated anthocyanins as antioxidants, which means they help us absorb important nutrients from our food. They also keep our gut bacteria balanced, reduce inflammation and help to control blood sugar levels and the amount of fat in the body.
Chen says that a plant’s genotype determines its anthocyanin level. Generally, purple vegetables hold lots of acylated anthocyanins and an especially special variety of purple potatoes called ‘Synkeä Sakari’ from Finland has the most acylated anthocyanins.
A special type of antioxidants called acylated anthocyanins travel from the top part of our digestive system to the colon, where they are broken down by bacteria living in our gut. There are different types of transporters that help these anthocyanins enter our bodies. Some work only with the acylated kind and some work only with the nonacylated kind. These two kinds also have an effect on the enzymes that take part in breaking them down.
Recently, a study has shown that two types of chemicals called “acylated” and “nonacylated anthocyanins” can have an effect on Type 2 Diabetes. This information was released in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
Reference: “Anthocyanins as Promising Molecules Affecting Energy Homeostasis, Inflammation, and Gut Microbiota in Type 2 Diabetes with Special Reference to Impact of Acylation” by Kang Chen, Maaria Katariina Kortesniemi, Kaisa Marjut Linderborg and Baoru Yang, 14 December 2022, Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.2c05879
