Role of indigenous leafy vegetables in combating hunger and malnutrition

Rensburg, W.S. Jansen van; Venter, S.L.; Netshiluvhi, T.R.; Heever, E. van den; Vorster, H.J.; Ronde, J. A. de; Bornman, Chris H.

doi:10.1016/s0254-6299(15)30268-4

Cited by 108 publications

(81 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Iron, zinc and vitamin B 12 deficiencies can impair growth, cognitive development and school performance, with life-long implications for health and socio-economic success [29]. The best dietary sources of these nutrients are animal source foods (bushmeat), leafy green vegetables commonly collected in forest areas [34][35][36], and legumes.…”

Section: Nutritional Quality Of Forest Foodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Contribution of Forests and Trees to Sustainable Diets

et al. 2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:With the growing demands from a population expected to reach 9 billion people by 2050, it is unclear how our current global food system will meet future food needs. Ensuring that all people have access to adequate and nutritious food produced in an environmentally and socio-culturally sustainable manner is one of the greatest challenges of our time. -Sustainable diets‖ have been proposed as a multidimensional framework to address the need for nutritious and adequate food in the context of the many challenges facing the world today: reducing poverty and hunger, improving environmental health, enhancing human well-being and health, and strengthening local food networks, sustainable livelihoods and cultural heritage. This paper examines the contribution of forests and trees to sustainable diets, covering among others, nutritional, cultural, environmental and provisioning aspects. The literature reviewed highlight major opportunities to strengthen the contribution of forest and tree foods to sustainable diets. However, several constraints need to be removed. They relate to: cultural aspects, sustainable use of non-wood forest products, organization of forest food provisioning, limited knowledge of forest food composition, challenges in adapting management of forests and trees to account for forest foods, and in integrating forest biodiversity into complex landscapes managed for multiple benefits. Finally, the paper identifies research OPEN ACCESS Sustainability 2013, 5 4798 gaps and makes recommendations to enhance the contribution of forest foods to sustainable diets through increased awareness and better integration of information and knowledge on nutritious forest foods into national nutrition strategies and programs.

show abstract

Section: Nutritional Quality Of Forest Foodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Contribution of Forests and Trees to Sustainable Diets

et al. 2013

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The consumption of fruits and vegetables along with staple foods facilitates more bioaccessible micronutrients that otherwise would be inaccessible due to the presence of antinutrients, such as phytates and tannins (Ballot et al 1987;Ali and Tsou 1997;Jansen van Rensburg et al 2004;Flyman and Afolayan 2006;Baruah and Borah 2009). Integrating micronutrient-rich foods such as legumes, vegetables, and fruits into diets is the most practical and sustainable way to alleviate micronutrient deficiency.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutritionally Enhanced Staple Food Crops

Dwivedi

Sahrawat

Kedar

et al. 2012

Plant Breeding Reviews

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Unlike conventional vegetables, there is no documented information about the stage of plant development to define harvest maturity for wild leafy vegetables. Hence data on their nutritional value is likely to vary widely (Guarino, 1997;Jansen van Rensburg et al, 2004;Kruger et al, 1998), due to influences of plant age and the environmental conditions during plant growth.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Amaranthus species are probably the most widely occurring leafy vegetables in South Africa and Africa in general (Guarino, 1997;Jansen van Rensburg et al, 2004), and data on the nutritional value of Amaranthus are available in literature (Guarino, 1997;Jansen van Rensburg et al, 2004;Kruger et al, 1998). The premise of this study was a postulation that environmental conditions during plant growth and plant age interact to influence the nutritional value of wild leafy vegetables.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Growth temperature and plant age influence on nutritional quality of <i>Amaranthus</i> leaves and seed germination capacity<sup>#</sup>

Modi¹

2009

WSA

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

As a leafy vegetable, Amaranthus can be harvested at different stages of plant growth, ranging from young seedlings to the late juvenile stage, but data on the changes in leaf nutritional value with plant age are scanty. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of growth temperature on Amaranthus leaf yield and nutritional quality at different stages of plant growth. Five species, A. hybridus var. cruentus, A. hypochondriacus, A. tricolor, A. thunbergii and A. hybridus were compared for their response to hot (33/27 o C), warm (27/21 o C) and cool (21/15 o C) temperature regimes (day/night) in separate glasshouses. Plants were harvested at 20, 40 and 60 d after sowing and leaf yield, minerals (Ca, P and Fe), total protein content, amino acid (methionine and lysine) content and antioxidant activity (inhibition of linoleic acid oxidation) were determined. Seed yield and germination capacity, during two years of after-ripening, were also determined. Results showed that leaf protein content differed significantly (P < 0.01) between species. It was also significantly (P < 0.01) influenced by the growth temperature and stage of plant growth. The pattern of changes in the amounts of lysine and methionine was comparable to that of protein content, but A. thunbergii showed significantly higher amino acid content than the other species. Amaranthus leaves also contained significantly (P < 0.01) more lysine than methionine, regardless of the species and growth temperature. The phosphorus content of leaves was not significantly affected by temperature and stage of plant development, and there were also no significant differences between species. However, the amounts of both calcium and iron changed significantly (P < 0.05) with stages of plant development and with increasing temperatures for all species. The antioxidant activity of Amaranthus leaves increased consistently with plant age and there were significant (P < 0.01) differences between stages of plant development and growth temperature. Warm temperature regimes were most favourable (P < 0.01) for biomass accumulation in all species. Seed production under cool and hot temperatures significantly (P < 0.01) decreased seed germination capacity for all species, but germination improved in response to after-ripening. It is recommended that for greater nutritional benefit, Amaranthus should be grown under warm conditions and younger leaves are preferable.

show abstract

Role of indigenous leafy vegetables in combating hunger and malnutrition

Cited by 108 publications

References 0 publications

The Contribution of Forests and Trees to Sustainable Diets

The Contribution of Forests and Trees to Sustainable Diets

Nutritionally Enhanced Staple Food Crops

Growth temperature and plant age influence on nutritional quality of <i>Amaranthus</i> leaves and seed germination capacity<sup>#</sup>

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About