There were two main purposes to this study. The first was to determine the
vitamin B-6 and pyridoxine β-glucoside content of selected foods commonly
consumed in Malawi. The second was to examine the effect of preparation
procedures of foods in Malawi on the content of vitamin B-6 and pyridoxine β-
glucoside in foods. Seventeen plant foods commonly eaten in Malawi were
determined for vitamin B-6 and pyridoxine β-glucoside using a microbiological
assay. In addition, two commercial weaning foods, roasted maize-soy bean blend
and extruded maize-soy bean blend, were also determined for vitamin B-6 and
pyridoxine β-glucoside contents. Among all the foods analyzed, whole maize flour
contained the highest amount of vitamin B-6 (0.66 mg/100 g), therefore, an
excellent source of vitamin B-6 content in foods. Cooking decreased vitamin B-6
in pinto beans, kidney beans, sugar beans and cow peas by 34%, 45%, 14% and
48%, respectively. Roasting decreased vitamin B-6 in chick peas and soy beans by
59% and 38%, respectively. Soaking and fermentation reduced vitamin B-6 in
soaked maize flour and cassava flour by 86% and 89 %, respectively. Therefore,
these data suggest that some of the preparation procedures practiced in Malawi
have a negative impact on the vitamin B-6 content of the processed foods. Cooked
and roasted foods contained lower total amount of pyridoxine-glucoside than that
of the raw food. The high pyridoxine β-glucoside content have adverse impact on the bioavailability of vitamin B-6 content. Based on typical diets for the urban and
rural populations in Malawi, the rural diet contained less vitamin B-6 compared to
that of urban diet. Therefore, the rural population may be at risk of inadequate
vitamin B-6 intake compared to the urban population. / Graduation date: 2002
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ORGSU/oai:ir.library.oregonstate.edu:1957/25957 |
| Date | 30 January 2002 |
| Creators | Kaunda, Jean R. |
| Contributors | Leklem, James E. |
| Source Sets | Oregon State University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
Page generated in 0.0018 seconds