Cyanidin 3-glucoside (C3G) is a water-soluble plant compound that is part of the anthocyanins category. It plays an active role in producing the dark color pigments in a variety of fruits and flowers. This natural substance is primarily sourced from fruits and vegetable with dark skins such as purple potatoes, blueberries, plums, blackcurrants, and black rice.

Most people already get a certain amount of cyanidin 3-glucoside in their diet, but this is usually at a negligible amount. It is possible to increase the intake of this substance by making a change in the diet or taking it in supplement form.

Here are seven of the potential health benefits for increasing the intake of cyanidin 3-glucoside:

Antioxidant

The rich antioxidant content of this compound helps the body neutralize the build up of free radicals. Free radicals develop when oxygen is able to interact with specific molecules. By neutralizing the free radical damage, it is possible to minimize the risk of serious disease such as certain cancers (skin, prostate, lung, and colon) and heart disease.

Atherosclerosis

The risk of atherosclerosis is lowered with an increased intake of cyanidin 3-glucoside. Atherosclerosis is a condition that relates to the build up of plaque on the artery wall which prevents the proper blood flow throughout the system. If the artery walls are restricted too much because of the hard plaque this can increase the risk of suffering from a heart attack.

Diabetes

It has the ability to help suffers of type-2 diabetes because of its ability to increase insulin sensitivity and reduce glucose levels.

Anti-inflammatory

Foods rich in cyanidin 3-glucoside can help to increase the body’s ability to fight-off inflammation, which has the negative effect of causing serious health conditions.

Eye health

This plant compound has the ability to regenerate rhodopsin, which is essential to let the retina absorb light. A benefit of this is the ability to improve night vision. Plus, the rich antioxidant content is believed to have a positive effect of slowing the development of age related eye diseases such as macular degeneration.

Tissues

The powerful antioxidant properties in cyanidin 3-glucoside make it useful to tissues by slowing the aging process, fighting off DNA damage, and preventing the formation of cancerous cells by encouraging apoptosis, which is the programmed death of diseased cells.

Fat loss

For the bodybuilder there is the potential to increase muscle gain and reduce fat gain because this compound has the ability to improve insulin sensitivity, which is useful for providing more carbohydrate calories and protein to muscle cells.