journal article·2022-10-02Open access

Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Properties of Edible Flowers

Panagiotis Kandylis

Applied Sciences· Volume 12· Issue 19

Abstract

Nowadays there is a growing interest among consumers for functional food products, and edible flowers could be a solution to fulfill this demand. Edible flowers have been used throughout the centuries for their pharmaceutical properties, but also in some areas for culinary purposes. There is a great variety of edible flowers, and numerous studies are available regarding their chemical composition and potential antioxidant and functional characteristics. Therefore, the present work focuses on gathering a vast amount of data regarding edible flowers. Phytochemical content, total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and antioxidant activity (DPPH, FRAP, ABTS, etc.) of more than 200 edible flowers are presented. The main phytochemicals belong to the groups of phenolic acids, flavonoids, carotenoids and tocols, while great variability is reported in their content. The present study could be a useful tool to select the edible flowers that can be served as sources of specific phytochemicals with increased antioxidant activity and evaluate them for their safety and potential application in food industry, during processing and storage.
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Research context

OpenAlex topics: Phytochemicals and Antioxidant Activities · Phytochemistry and Biological Activities · Phytochemical and Pharmacological Studies

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Department of Food Science and Technology, School of Agriculture, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, P.O. Box 235, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece

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