Tomorrow's tortillas, if made with a unique corn from ARS research, may help reduce iron-deficiency anemia. That could be a boon in developing countries where corn-based foods are a part of nearly every meal, and in developed nations where iron deficiency is also common. Developed by Agricultural Research Service geneticist Victor A. Raboy at Aberdeen, Idaho, the novel corn has about 66 percent less phytic acid, or phytate, than most common varieties.
Phytic acid is thought to reduce the body's ability to use certain nutrients, like iron.
Now, University of Colorado researchers are leading an investigation of the effects of the corn on zinc absorption in a new study with Guatemalan villagers. Patented in 1997 and licensed to three companies, the unusual corn may also boost the health of the environment because it reduces pollution that could otherwise occur when phosphorus in the manure of corn-fed animals makes its way into waterways. El ma z fue desarrollado por un genetista, Victor A. Raboy de ARS en Aberdeen, Idaho. Davis demostraron sus resultados con 14 voluntarios adultos var nes.