Resumo

GUTIERREZ ZAVALA, Ángel; LEDESMA RIVERO, Luis; GARCIA GARCIA, Isabel  e  GRAJALES CASTILLEJOS, Octavio. Total antioxidant capability of conventional and regional foods in Chiapas, Mexico. Rev Cubana Salud Pública [online]. 2007, vol.33, n.1. ISSN 0864-3466.

Objectives: To evaluate the total antioxidant capability of 24 conventional foods and nine regional foods from Chiapas state. Methods: The foods were picked up at “Rafael Pascacio Gamboa” marketplace of Tuxtla Gutiérrez: 17 foods from the vegetable or greenery group, seven from the fruit group and nine that were considered regional. To determine the total antioxidant capability, we used Miller et al´s technique that is based on the formation of a green-blue coloured radical measured at 600nm. This colouring is proportional to antioxidant activity and is measured by comparing it to a vitamin E-synthetic derivative pattern. Results: Among the regional vegetables, it was found that boiled courgettes exhibited the highest antioxidant capability values whereas cucumber had the lowest; on the other hand, vegetables like avocato pear, watercress, cabbage and onion demonstrated higher antioxidant values than those of the same species grown in Cuba. On the contrary, guava, orange and papaya grown in Cuba had the highest antioxidant figures in the fruit group. The best regional foods as to the antioxidant capability were mint and purslane. Conclussions: It is hoped that the achieved results will contribute to underline the importance of eating those foods whose antioxidant capability protect the body from the action of free radicals causing aging and some diseases

Palavras-chave : Total antioxidant capability; conventional foods; regional foods; fruits and vegetables.

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