TI: Carotenoid values of selected plant foods common to Southern Burkina Faso, West Africa.

AU: Smith-GC; Dueker-SR; Clifford-AJ; Grivetti-LE
AD: Graduate Group in Geography, Univ. of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA
PY: 1996
SO: Ecology-of-Food-and-Nutrition; 35 (1) 43-58, many ref.
DT: Journal-Article
LA: En (English)
SC: J Fruits-vegetables-and-nuts

AB: Carotenoid content and use of 6 commonly consumed plants from Burkina Faso, West Africa, were investigated. Carotenoids (alpha-carotene, beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, cis isomers of beta-carotene) in fresh leaves of Adansonia digitata, Ceiba pentandra, Hibiscus sabdariffa and Vigna sp., dry leaves of A. digitata and flower and pulp of A. digitata, Bixa orellana, H. sabdariffa and Parkiia biglobosa were determined by HPLC. Data from focus group interviews revealed that wild edible plants comprised 21% of the total diet in the study area. 4 of the 6 plants analysed were wild, 2 were cultivated. On a wt. basis, fresh plant samples contained twice the concn. of carotenoids in dried samples. Fresh leaves of A. digitata (beta-carotene concn. of 5.92 mg/100g) were most frequently consumed. Fresh leaves of C. pentandra had the highest concn. of beta-carotene (9.55 mg/100 g), containing twice the concn. determined in the reference food (fresh spinach).

DE: CAROTENOIDS-; LIPIDS-; PIGMENTS-; VEGETABLES-SPECIFIC; LEAF-VEGETABLES
UD: 199612