Nutritional, Antioxidant and Quality Acceptability of Smoothies Supplemented with Moringa Oleifera Leaves

Abstract

This study evaluated the impact of the level of supplementation of Moringa oleifera leaves on the nutritional (proximate, mineral and vitamin content) as well as on the antioxidant capacities of smoothies made from a blend of pineapple, banana and apple. The beverage (smoothies) were supplemented with Moringa oleifera leaves at 1.5, 3.0 and 4.5% levels and evaluated for proximate, antioxidant (ferric reducing antioxidant power, FRAP and 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picryhydrazy, DPPH), mineral, vitamin, physicochemical and quality acceptability. The results showed that the moisture content of the beverage ranged between 49.24 – 78.62%, total ash: 1.01 – 9.71, crude fiber: 5.14 – 9.39%, crude fat: 0.72 – 1.86%, crude protein: 5.47 – 19.37% and carbohydrate: 3.65 – 16.99%. Calcium (12.03 -15.53) and potassium (17.22 -25.38) were the predominant mineral elements when compared to magnesium (1.51 – 3.05) mg/L. The vitamin contents ranged between 2.5 – 10.8 and 0.15 – 0.93 mg/L for vitamin C and E, respectively. Total phenolic contents ranged between 4.68 – 6.18 mg/ml while the total flavonoid contents ranged between 0.01 – 0.14 mg/ml. The radical scavenging abilities (DPPH) of the samples ranged between 16.05 – 88.77% while the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) ranged between 0.38 – 7.36 mg/ml. The brix values showed high sugar contents (15 – 18%) while the pH results showed that the sample was almost neutral at a range between 6.3 and 6.5. The overall quality (sensory) acceptability of the different quality parameters evaluated indicated that the control sample was more preferred. While supplementation with Moringa oleifera leaves significantly affected the sensory parameters, its addition nevertheless offers a potential avenue to obtain additional nutrients besides its improved antioxidative properties.

Formulation, acceptability, and chemical characteristics of mango nectar enriched with moringa moringa oleifera, lam leaves extract

“…Also, the apparent higher carbohydrate contents obtained from unblended samples (control) when compared to the blended sample (F3 and F6) may be the result of low moisture contents in the blended samples, rather than a high carbohydrate content than the control, which obviously has a significantly low moisture content. The carbohydrate content reported in this investigation was comparable to those by Aderinola, (2018). The addition of moringa leaf extract boosted the vitamin A content of mango nectar.…”

Mercuric pollution of surface water, superficial sediments, Nile tilapia (Oreochromis nilotica Linnaeus 1758 [Cichlidae]) and yams (Dioscorea alata) in auriferous areas of Namukombe stream, Syanyonja, Busia- Uganda

“…They enhance accumulation of heavy metals in benthic invertebrates, thereby transferring them to higher levels of food chains [70][71][72][73][74]. Therefore, monitoring sediments can enhance a more accurate tracking of trace metal contamination of aquatic ecosystems [75][76][77][78][79][80][81] compared to water and/or floating aquatic plants, which tend to give inaccurate estimations due to water discharge fluctuations and lower resident times.…”

Food Applications of Telfairia occidentalis as a Functional Ingredient and Nanoencapsulation as a Promising Approach toward Enhancing Food Fortification

“…The addition of the leaves significantly improves proteins, carbohydrates, and minerals, especially calcium and potassium in the smoothies. But while T. occidentalis leaves were able to significantly improve the crude protein content, the percentage inclusion should not be more than 1.5 [63].…”

“…Fortification of T. occidentalis can be significant to tackle nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition. The researchers indicate its applications in different kinds of foods as chin-chin [61], cassava pasta, [62], smoothies, [63], soups condiment (Ogiri ugu) [64,65]. The foods are described here in detail.…”

“…T. occidentalis leaves powder has been incorporated at the rate of 1.5, 3.0, and 4.5% to the different ratios of smoothies [63]. The addition of the leaves significantly improves proteins, carbohydrates, and minerals, especially calcium and potassium in the smoothies.…”