Abstract
Melissopalynology, antioxidant capacity and mineral and toxic element contents were analyzed in eight types of Hungarian honeys. Based on color, two groups were distinguished: light honeys comprised acacia, amorpha, phacelia and linden honeys; while dark honeys included sunflower, chestnut, fennel and sage honeys, with 100 to 300 and 700 to 1500 mAU, respectively. The unifloral origin of each sample was supported using pollen analysis. The absorbance of honey correlated positively with antioxidant capacity determined by three different methods (TRC, DPPH, ORAC), and also with mineral content. The exception was the light amber linden honey with significantly higher K content and antiradical activity than other light honeys. The Mn, Zn and Fe contents were the highest in chestnut, sunflower and fennel honeys, respectively. The black meadow sage honey performed best regarding the content of other elements and antioxidant activity. The concentrations of several toxic elements were below the detection limit in the samples, indicating their good quality. The principal component analysis (PCA) revealed correlations between different antioxidant assays and minerals, and furthermore, confirmed the botanical authentication of the honeys based on the studied parameters. To our best knowledge, the present study is the first to provide a complex analysis of quality parameters of eight unifloral Hungarian honeys.
Highlights
Honey is a complex food, which has played an important role in human nutrition and medicine since ancient times
The botanical origin of honey samples was established by microscopic pollen analysis and spectrophotometric color determination (Table 1, Figure 1), which is a combination of methods accepted for identifying different honey types [15,32]
The light-colored linden honey, whose activity was comparable to the dark-colored chestnut honey, was an exception to the general observation that dark honeys presented better parameters as compared to light honeys
Summary
Honey is a complex food, which has played an important role in human nutrition and medicine since ancient times. The essential constituents responsible for the dietary, antiviral, antifungal and antibacterial effects of the substance originate from single or multiple plant species. The floral source is one of the most significant factors in determining the main quality parameters of honey [1]. The possible floral markers of honeys can be divided into pollen and phytochemicals [2]. For determining the pollen quality and quantity in the honey sample, the time-consuming melissopalynology method is the effective tool [3]. The chemical composition of honey depends on several factors, such as geographical origin, season and storage, so it is difficult to find reliable chemical markers. The complex study of honey characters and their correlations are needed for establishing the proper authenticity of honey types
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