ANTIOXIDANT CONTRIBUTION OF LAVENDER (Lavandula angustifolia), SAGE (Salvia officinalis), TILIA (Tilia tomentosa) AND SIDERITIS (Sideritis perfoliata) BEVERAGES PREPARED AT HOME.

Abstract

Background: Nature provides us with all the necessary ingredients to lead a healthy life, while data from ancient civilizations and scientific discoveries support the fact that the use of aromatic plants and herbs due to their therapeutic properties is a neglected healthy habit. Methods: This study examines the antioxidant activity in domestic preparation of four herb beverages Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia), Sage (Salvia officinalis), Tilia (Tilia tomentosa) and Sideritis (Sideritis perfoliata) aiming to investigate the presence of antioxidants in the plants and to define which domestic preparation method of the beverage (decoction/infusion) ensures better antioxidant capacity. In the experimental procedure, herbal decoctions and infusions (boiling time 5 minutes) were extracted with 4 different solvents of increasing polarity (petroleum ether, diaithylether, ethyl acetate, butanol). This process resulted to 10 samples from each herb beverage. Each of them was examined for the TPC via the Folin-Ciocalteau method, the interaction with the cationic radical ABTS, the free stable radical DPPH for the determination of antioxidant capacity, the hydroxyl radical scavenging ability, the inhibition of lipid peroxidation of linoleic acid and finally the acceptability of each beverage with respect to the manner of preparation through sensory evaluation in a total number of 40 random volunteers. Results: Τhe results exhibit the characteristics represented by each herb. Comparison and classification between them was also performed. The antioxidant characteristics of the herbs were affected both by the preparation method as well as the extraction solvent. Conclusions: All herbs exhibited high antioxidant capacity. However, not all were positively evaluated during the organoleptic evaluation which raises the question of whether these beneficial herbs would be ANTIOXIDANT CONTRIBUTION OF LAVENDER (Lavandula angustifolia), SAGE (Salvia officinalis), TILIA (Tilia tomentosa) AND SIDERITIS (Sideritis perfoliata) BEVERAGES PREPARED AT HOME.