10

Sources of natural antioxidants:

vegetables, fruits, herbs, spices and teas
Professor N. V. Yanishlieva-Maslarova, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences,
Sofia, and Professor I. M. Heinonen, University of Helsinki

10.1 Introduction
This chapter presents the results of the stabilisation of lipids and lipid-
containing food against oxidation, by various vegetables, fruits, herbs, spices
and teas. The antioxidative activity of different extracts obtained from the
plant material, as well as of individual antioxidants isolated from them is
discussed. Usually the effectiveness (or the stabilisation factor, F ) of the
substrates added is established on the basis of the determination of the ratio
between the oxidation stability (or induction period, IP) of the lipid or food
system in the presence of the additive, IPadd, and in its absence, IP0, e.g. F =
IPadd/IP0. Oxidation stability is expressed in time units, and is determined
from the kinetic curves of peroxide accumulation, or of oxygen absorption,
or/and of conjugated dienes accumulation. Apart from following the lipid
oxidation in bulk phase, results from measuring radical-scavenging activ-
ities and peroxidation in chemical and biological systems are also discussed.
The chemical structures of individual antioxidants isolated from vegetables,
fruits, herbs, spices and teas are also given.

10.2 Antioxidants from vegetables

Vegetable and fruit consumption has been shown in epidemiological studies
to be related to reduced risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease.1,2
Vegetables such as root and tuberous crops (carrots, potatoes, sweet
potatoes, red beets etc.), cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, Brussels sprouts,
broccoli etc.), green leafy vegetables (lettuce, spinach etc.), onions, toma-