Levels of Heavy Metals in Street Vended Fried-Cocoyam (Xanthosoma Sagittifolium) Chips Sold along Sango - Oshodi Expressway Nigeria

Heavy metals have been reported to have positive and negative roles in human life. Eighty samples were purchased from vendors, twelve samples of raw materials and thirty six samples were collected along processing line. The samples were digested carefully and metal elements were analyzed using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. Analyzed iron, lead, cadmium and arsenic in raw materials used by the three processors ranged from 0.000 to 16.010, 0.000 to 0.013, 0.000 to 0.155 and 0.250 to 0.809mg/Kg respectively. Heavy metal contents of samples taken along the processing line ranged from 0.00, 0.222 to 0.226, 0.758 to 0.959 and 0.00 to 0.801 mg/Kg  for lead, arsenic, iron and cadmium respectively. The content of iron, cadmium and arsenic of street vended samples ranged from 0.653 to 0.8, 0.00 to 0.10 and 0.221 to 0.225 mg/kg respectively The results of the present study showed that metal elements except arsenic were within the NIS maximum permitted level (0.1mg/kg for lead, cadmium and arsenic; 1.5mg/kg for iron) by Nigerian Industrial Standard and Codex Alimentarius for street vended food. Keywords: Heavy metals, Street vended food, health, contaminants, Cocoyam, Xanthosoma sagittifolium

Effect of species, pretreatments, and drying methods on the functional and pasting properties of high-quality yam flour

The study investigated the functional properties of HQYF (high-quality yam flour) from tubers of four dioscorea species. The tubers were processed into HQYF using two pretreatments (potassium metabisulphite: 0.28%, 15 min; blanching: 70°C, 15 min) and drying methods (cabinet: 60°C, 48 h; sun drying: 3 days). Significant differences (P < 0.05) were observed in pasting characteristics of flours among the four species. The drying method significantly affected only the peak viscosity. The interactive effect of species, pretreatment, and drying methods on the functional properties was significant (P < 0.05) except for emulsification capacity, angle of repose, and least gelation concentration. The significant variation observed in most of the functional properties of the HQYF could contribute significantly to breeding programs of the yam species for diverse food applications. The pastes of flour from Dioscorea dumetorum pretreated with potassium metabisulphite and dried under a cabinet dryer were stable compared to other samples, hence will have better applications in products requiring lower retrogradation during freeze/thaw cycles

Fatty acid profile and dietary fibre contents of some standardized soups and dishes consumed in Nigeria

Background: Dietary fat is implicated in the increasing development of chronic  diseases in developing countries while dietary fibre play major role in the  management of these diseases. Accurate nutrient  composition data for composite dishes unique to a population is essential for the development of a nutrient database and the calculation of dietary intake.Methods: Representative samples of standardized Nigerian soups and dishes were analyzed for fatty acids using gas chromatography mass spectrophotometry (GC-MS) and dietary fibre using an enzymatic-gravimetric standard method of AOAC.Results: The total Saturated Fatty acids (SFAs) ranged from 0.74+0.3g/100g to 73.82+0.07g/100g. The total monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and  polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) ranged from  2.16+1.13g/100g for Yam pottage to 22.25+0.58g/100g for Okazi soup and eba, and from 0.42+0.10g/100g for Yam pottage to 10.22+0.1g/100g for Pounded yam with egusi ball soup, respectively. Trans fat was observed in Alapafubu and Tuwo shinkafa (2.80+0.2g/100g), Yam pottage (0.20+0.15g/100g), Steamed bean pudding (1.28+0.53g/100g) and Ikokore (5.33+0.41g/100g). The Total Dietary Fibre (TDF) contents of the dishes ranged from 12.95+2.99g/100g in Jollof rice to 62.00+0.94g/100g in Melon seed and vegetable soup, the Soluble Dietary Fibre (SDF) ranged from 2.05+0.32g/100g in Steamed bean pudding to 7.81+0.74g/100g in Ikokore while the Insoluble Dietary Fibre (IDF) ranged from 8.20+0.43g/100g in Jollof rice to   57.91+4.69g/100g in melon seed and vegetable soup.Conclusions: The study has indicated that some Nigerian dishes are characterized by high SFAs, TFAs and dietary fibre, moderate MUFAs and very low levels of PUFAs. High levels of SFAs in some soups and dishes are a major public health concern.Key words: Healthy diet, dietary fibre, fatty acid profile, chronic diseases, Nigerian dishes

The antinutritional and vitamin composition of high‐quality yam flour as affected by yam specie, pretreatment, and drying method

Fresh yams are not shelf stable due to its high susceptibility to physiological deterioration; hence, its conversion into a more stable product like flour can stimulate its industrial application as a substitute to wheat flour. The influence of yam species, pretreatment, and drying method on the antinutritional factor and vitamin composition of high‐quality yam flour (HQYF) was determined. Four different yam species were pretreated with 0.28% potassium metabisulphite for 15 min and blanching at 70°C for 15 min. The differently pretreated slices were thereafter dried with cabinet dryer at 60°C for 48 h and open sun for 3 days, then milled into flour. The flour samples were analyzed for antinutritional and vitamin contents using standard laboratory procedures. The antinutritional factors in the high‐quality yam flour were significantly (p &lt; .05) affected by yam specie, pretreatment, and drying methods. The low level of alkaloids (0.02 mg/100 g) and phytates (13.43 mg/100 g) in the flour samples from D . rotundata in this study underscores its safety for absorption in the body when consumed/used as food formulations. The main and interactive effect of specie of specie, pretreatment, and drying methods influenced the vitamin content of the high‐quality yam flour significantly (p &lt; 0.05). The appreciable level of vitamin C (20.87–30.91 mg/100 g) recorded in all the HQYF could indicate the product of good nutritional quality for the consumers

Standardization and Proximate Contents of Selected Commonly Consumed Nigerian Soups and Dishes

Background: The change in the dietary pattern of Nigerians to a more western diet has been implicated in adverse health outcomes increassing in the prevalence of undernutrition and chronic diseases. Availability of recent data on recipe and nutrient content of foods as consumed is crucial in disease management and dietary intake studies.Objective: This study standardized and determined proximate contents of selected commonly consumed Nigerian soups and dishes.&nbsp;Materials and methods: A cross-sectional and convergent parallel design was adopted. Recipe of soups and dishes of households were obtained from 800 purposively selected housewives in Lagos, Ogun, Oyo and Osun States, Nigeria using semi-structured questionnaire and 4 focus-group discussion sessions. Recipes were standardized, soup and dish samples were prepared and analyzed for proximate contents using standard methods of AOAC. Data were analyzed using median, mean and standard deviation using Microsoft excel office 2019 software.Results: Moisture content of the soups and dishes ranged from 40.54–85.49 g/100g, carbohydrate content ranged from 0.74–32.53 g/100g, protein content ranged from 4.49–26.85 g/100g, fat content ranged from 6.03–21.81 g/100g, crude fibre content ranged from 0.24–2.38 g/100g and ash content ranged from 0.24–3.00 g/100g.Conclusion:Soups had higher protein, fat and crude fibre contents while dishes had higher carbohydrate contents. Habitual consumption of most of these soups and dishes may promote healthy dietary lifestyle and reduce diet-related disease risk