Comparative Evaluation of the Nutritional Qualities and Antioxidant Properties of Lotus (<i>lactuca sativa</i>) and Cress (<i>lepidium sativum</i>)

Abstract

Vegetables are important food plants which play a vital role in human health. This study evaluated and compared the nutritional qualities and antioxidant  properties of Lotus (Lactuca sativa) and Cress (Lepidium sativum) using standard analytical procedures. Proximate analysis revealed that the  percentage of crude protein (11.14± 0.03%), ash (18.30± 0.01%), crude fat (10.82± 0.17%) and carbohydrate (19.24±0.02%) were higher in cress while  percentage moisture (32.21± 1.67%), crude fibre (18.18± 0.01%) and vitamin C (11.20± 0.09%) were higher in lotus. For mineral analysis, the  concentrations of Mg(13.07± 0.67mg/ 100 g), K(180.70± 0.36mg/ 100 g), Fe(128.76± 1.07mg/ 100 g), and Na(173.70 ±3.14mg/ 100 g) were higher in cress  while concentrations of Zn (96.81± 0.87mg/ 100 g) and Ca (0.57± 0.01 mg/ 100 g) were found to be higher in lotus. Higher antioxidant activities at various  concentrations of the extract were observed in lotus sample than the cress sample. Based on the results obtained, the study revealed higher nutritional  values in cress sample than the lotus sample but higher antioxidant activity was observed in the lotus sample. Therefore, this suggests that both samples  can be used as good sources of minerals especially Zn, K and Fe and can also serve as good sources of natural antioxidants in diets.