Nutritional and antioxidant properties of different brown and red Spanish edible seaweeds.

摘要

Nutritional composition, total dietary fiber (TDF), mineral contents, fatty acid and amino acid profiles, polyphenol concentration and antioxidant activity of 3 Spanish seaweeds were compared. 2 brown seaweeds (Himanthalia elongata and Undaria pinnatifida) and 1 red (Porphyra umbilicalis) seaweed were studied. TDF and ash were the most abundant components of the brown seaweeds, while TDF and protein were the main components of the red seaweed. In all seaweeds, lipid contents were very low, but PUFA contents were high. Although the red seaweed contained significantly (P < 0.05) more protein than the brown seaweeds, all 3 contained all the essential amino acids at levels comparable to FAO/WHO requirements. The brown seaweeds contained significantly more minerals than the red seaweed; they were found to be a rich source of K, Na, Ca and Mg and demonstrated a beneficial Na/K ratio. H. elongata had a remarkably high polyphenol content, endowing it with appreciable antioxidant activity. Results suggest that these seaweeds offer considerable potential as functional food ingredients due to their high antioxidative activity and components such as dietary fiber, minerals, trace elements, proteins and lipids, which generate many different kinds of biological activities.