Abstract
Fruits and vegetables are known as sources of nutritionally important phytochemicals, such as phenolic compounds, and Brazilian biodiversity may be hiding many underexplored fruits with potential health benefits. In this study, we formulated a fruit-based beverage by supplementing known amounts of freeze-dried araçá-boi (Eugenia stipitata) (FD) to a commercial apple nectar in order to evaluate the impact in terms of nutritional (level of phenolic compounds, flavonoids and antioxidant capacity) and sensory parameters. The best acceptance was evidenced for the apple nectar supplemented with 1 g/L of FD, while no statistically significant changes were obtained for non-supplemented apple nectar and apple nectar supplemented with 5 or 10 g/L FD. Lower acceptances for apple nectars supplemented with 15, 20 or 30 g/L FD were suggested to be caused by an increase in acidity. In general, total phenols, flavonoids and antioxidant capacity (DPPH, TEAC and ORAC) increased with the supplementation level, although not always a statistically significant difference was observed. When compared to control (non-supplemented), the apple nectar supplemented with 10 g/L FD presented a significant increase in total phenols, flavonoids and antioxidant capacity (except for ORAC assay), and therefore this level of supplementation was considered ideal, considering both nutritional and sensory properties.
Highlights
Consumption of fruits and vegetables is no longer merely a result of taste and personal preference, but it has been associated with the adoption of healthier lifestyles due the presence of essential nutrients and secondary phytochemical compounds that are frequently associated to the protection against several pathophysiological processes [1,2,3]
Based on the yield of freeze-dried araçá-boi (FD) (13.15 g/100 g), the composition of araçá-boi was calculated in wet weight and dry weight basis (Table 1)
We showed that the supplementation of commercial apple nectar with an exotic fruit from Brazil, at an optimal concentration of 10 g/L, can enhance the total phenols, flavonoids and the antioxidant capacity of this beverage without significantly interfering in its sensory properties
Summary
Consumption of fruits and vegetables is no longer merely a result of taste and personal preference, but it has been associated with the adoption of healthier lifestyles due the presence of essential nutrients and secondary phytochemical compounds that are frequently associated to the protection against several pathophysiological processes [1,2,3]. For these reasons, much effort has been made to characterize the phytochemical contents of tropical fruits that, besides presenting a great species diversity with characteristic flavors, attractive colors, and special scents, are considered stronger candidates for screening of antioxidant properties [2,4,6]. Much effort has been made to characterize the phytochemical contents of tropical fruits that, besides presenting a great species diversity with characteristic flavors, attractive colors, and special scents, are considered stronger candidates for screening of antioxidant properties [2,4,6] In this context, Brazil offers a wide variety of native fruits with nutritional qualities and health claims that are still little known by consumers. Due to the economic potential and social importance of Brazilian native fruits, several scientific research institutions have tried to reinforce the agroindustrial development by developing commercial production orchards as well as technological capabilities of industrial processing of these fruits [13]
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