Annatto: Delivering Tocotrienols from Amazonia

摘要

During the 17th and 18th centuries, coloring of foods for aesthetic purposes was fashionable. Among various natural colors introduced at the time was annatto, a pigment that—while novel to those in North America, Europe, and Asia—had been used by South Americans as far back as 3,600 years ago.1 But ancient Mayans, Incans, and Aztecs of Central and South America did not use annatto, also known as Bixa orellana as it was named after Amazon explorer Francisco de Orellana, for coloring purposes alone. Ancient uses of annatto extracts for folk medicine served as a skin protectant, cardiotonic, anti-inflammatory, and even antibiotic.