Antioxidants: Benefits to human health

Introduction:

Plant products become essential for human nutrition. Plants produce fruits rich in carbohydrate,
proteins, vitamins and fibre that are necessary for health maintenance. They become an integral part in
the human life. Different parts of plants are used for several purposes in daily life. Plants products are
source of vegetables, fruits, essential oils, spices, beverage and many more that plays importance role
in human life. The fruits and vegetables, especially rich in antioxidants, are needed for humans and
animals to preserve their health. Antioxidants exist in many foods that it’s easy to get them through a
balanced diet. Antioxidant is mostly used for the two different groups of substances: industrial
chemicals are added to products to prevent oxidation, and naturally occurring compounds that are
present in foods and tissues. Natural antioxidants help defend cells from damage caused by potentially
harmful molecules known as free radicals. Early research on the role of antioxidants starts since
mankind began to store their food, preventing the oxidation of unsaturated fats, which is the cause of
rancidity and focusing on different methods such as refrigeration or the use of additives to extend the
shelf life. Some of them acted as real antioxidants in food products. In ancient practice, the
antioxidants were used for food preservation. To understand the importance of antioxidants in the
food industry, we must understand the cell oxidation. In general, this occurs when an unstable atom
loses an electron (negatively charged particle), which allows it to form a new compound with another
chemical species, causing an imbalance between the production of reactive oxygen species and the
capacity to cleanse the body of harmful substances. The oxygen we use to breathe is one of the main
factors, which is responsible for cell oxidation and serves to the production of energy throughout the
body. When metabolised, it generates free radicals in the body but in small portions. Human organism
maintains a balance between reactive oxygen species and antioxidant defence systems. When this
balance is altered or decompensated, there is called oxidative stress. The correct use of antioxidants
depends fundamentally on both the knowledge of the mechanisms of autoxidation and the factors that
condition them, and on the nature of the processes on which the activity of the different anti oxidative
processes are based. Antioxidants have been used for the first time in the nineteenth century in the
rubber industry it was observed that some molecules could slow down the degradation and optimize
the process of vulcanization. In the twentieth century antioxidants are in the food industry, as a key
tool to curb the oxidative degradation of stored food. All the antioxidants are used by the plants to
protect themselves against environmental factors such as solar radiation, heat, toxic chemicals,
moulds, etc. Antioxidants protects all forms of life like plants, animals and humans - against the
damaging effects of oxygen radicals, which are always formed in an oxygenated environment. Over a
long time, all living forms evolved together and thus depend on each other for survival.

Objective:

To impart knowledge on the benefits of antioxidant on human health, as they serve as prevention and
treatment of many diseases like cancers, osteoporosis, cholestremia, immunity disorders,
neurodegenerative diseases. Naturally present antioxidants include flavonoids, phenols and lignans.
Plant-based foods are the best sources of natural antioxidants.
Natural sources of antioxidant:

Antioxidants exist in many foods that it’s easy to get them through a balanced diet. Healthy food is
the best source because it often contains multiple antioxidants like vitamins, flavonoids, tannins,
phenols and lignans which all work together to maintain your health. Our body also produces some
antioxidants, known as endogenous antioxidants and the antioxidants that are come from outside the
body are called exogenous antioxidants. The richest sources of antioxidants are fruits, vegetables, and
others like cereals and legumes. Foods that are particularly high in antioxidants are also known as a
"superfood". The products which supply high amounts of antioxidants are beverages, such as: coffee,
tea, cocoa, red wine, beer as well as herbs and spices. A large number of natural antioxidants are
present in plants, so plant derived products are considered as the basis source of these compounds for
humans. Fruits contain several vitamins , mineral salts, and dietary fiber also. Majority of the fruits
are rich in vitamin C, carotenoids and polyphenolic compounds. Especially berry fruits are considered
in this regard. Among berry fruits, some are especially rich source of vitamin C, the other contain
high amounts of polyphenolic compounds. Important group of natural antioxidants in animal-derived
food products are amino acids, peptides and proteins. Antioxidant activity of these compounds is
mainly due to the presence of amino acids which possess thiol groups (methionine, cysteine).
Products derived from animals is not a significant source of antioxidants in human diet. Natural
antioxidants are generally preferred by consumers. The fact is that a substance is natural and
commonly found in food may have low toxicity, or be carcinogenic or mutagenic but synthetic
antioxidants are tested for such effects.

Serial no. Food item Quantity Chemical

1 Small Red Bean (dried) Half cup Flavonoids

2 Wild blueberry 1 cup Anthocyanins

3 Red kidney bean (dried) Half cup Anthocyanins

4 Pinto bean Half cup Vitamin A & C

5 Blueberry (cultivated) 1 cup Flavonoids and anthocyanidins

6 Cranberry(whole) 1 cup Vitamin c

7 Artichoke (cooked) 1 cup Chlorogenic acid

8 Blackberry 1 cup Anthocyanins

9 Prune Half cup vitamin E, vitamin C and beta
carotene

10 Raspberry 1 cup Polyphenolic

11 Strawberry 1 cup Flavonoids, Anthocyanidins

12 Red Delicious apple 1 whole Catechin, Epicatechin

13 Granny Smith apple 1 whole Quercetin, Chlorogenic acid

14 Pecan 1 ounce Vitamin A & E

15 Sweet cherry 1 cup Melatonin,Phenols, Quercetin

16 Black plum 1 whole Catechin, Epicatechin, Quercetin

17 Russet potato (cooked) 1 whole Carotenoids like lutein, zexanthin,

and violaxanthin

18 Black bean (dried) Half cup Anthocyanins

19 Plum 1 whole Vitamin c

20 Gala apple 1 whole Vitamin c

General Extraction Methods of Antioxidants from Foods and Plants:

Extraction is the crucial and important step for studying the natural antioxidants from plants. Many
factors play important roles in the extraction efficiency, such as type and concentration of extraction
solvent, temperature, time, and pH. Among them, the solvent is one of the most influential factors.
Many type of solvents is used for the extraction of antioxidants from food and medicinal plants. The
solvents are selected based on the chemical nature and polarity of antioxidant compounds to be
extracted. Most of the phenolics, flavanoids and anthocyanins are hydrosoluble antioxidants. The
polar solvents, such as water, ethanol, methanol, propanol, acetone and their aqueous mixtures, are
widely used for extraction . Carotenoids are lipid-soluble antioxidants, and common organic solvents,
such as the mixtures of hexane with acetone have been used for extraction.
There are various extraction procedures, such as conventional extraction methods and non-
conventional extraction methods, suitable method can be selected to extract antioxidants from food
and medicinal plants.
Conventional Method: The conventional extraction methods are mainly hot water bath, maceration
and Soxhlet extraction, which are very time-consuming and require relatively large amounts of
organic solvents with low extraction yields . Furthermore, the long heating process such as hot water
bath and Soxhlet extraction may lead to the degradation of the thermolabile compounds.
Soxhlet extraction: In this method the fine crude drug is placed in thimble made of strong filter
paper which is placed in extraction chamber.the extracting solvent in boiling flask is heated and its
vapour is condense in condenser.the condensed extract drips into the thimble containing the crude
drug and extracts it by contact. When the level of liquid in a boiling flask rises to top of siphon tube
the liquid contents of extracting flask siphon into boiling flask. This process continues and is carried
out until a drop of solvent from the siphon tube does not leave residue when evaporated.

Hot water bath: In this method, a 50 ml borosilicate thermo resistant beaker has been loaded with
the sample and solvent mixture and placed in hot water bath. The beaker has been sealed with
Parafilm M. The extraction temperatures are regulated by temperature control unit at 30°C, 40°C,
50°C and 60°C and extracted for 2 hours. The subsequent steps which followed extraction have been
defatting and filteration.
Maceration: In this process, the whole or coarsely powdered crude drug is placed in a stoppered
container with the solvent( menstruum) and allowed to stand at room temperature for a period of
atleast 3 days with frequent stirring until the soluble matter has dissolved. The mixture is then
strained, the marc is pressed and the combined liquids are clarified by filteration.
Non-Conventional Method:
The non-conventional methods are ultrasound, microwave, pressurized liquid, enzyme hydrolysis,
supercritical fluids, high hydrostatic pressure, pulsed electric field.
Ultrasound extraction: The sound waves which have frequencies higher than 20khz are
mechanical vibrations in a solid and liquid.sound waves must travel in a matter and they involve
exapansion and compression cycle during travel in the medium.expansion pulls molecules apart amd
compression pushes them together. The expansion can create bubbles in the liquid and negative
pressure produces from it. The bubble form grow and finally collapse.the mechanical effects of
ultrasound induce a greater penetration of solvent into cellular materials and improve mass transfer.
Ultrasound in extraction can also disrupt biological cell walls and facilitating the release of content.

Microwave assisted extraction: Microwave are electromagnetic raditions with a frequency from
0.3 to 300ghz.microwave are transmitted as waves which ca penetrate biomaterials and interact with
polar molecules in the biomaterials to create heat and cell disruption is promoted by internal
superheating ehich facilitates desorption of chemicals from the matrix.
High hydrostatic pressure: In this method High hydrostatic pressure extraction on powdered (10-
100µm) was performed in an modified parr 4842 series high pressure extractor at varying pressures
of 5, 15, 25bar and at various temperatures of 30, 40 ,50, 60 and 70˚ C for an extraction time of 1, 2, 4
and 6 hours. The results are optimized by response surface methodology by using the software
package. The higher the hydrostatic pressure, the more solvent enters into the cell and more
compounds can permeate the cell membrane thereby extracting the phytochemicals such as
antioxidants present in their matrices. the pressure increases.

Pulsed electric field: The PEF extraction was one of the well-known technique for improving the
extraction processes. The main principle of PEF extraction is to disintegrate the structure of cell
membrane for increasing the rate of extraction process. The cell membrane is suspended in an electric
field, electric potential passes through the membrane. This electric potential separates membrane
molecules based on dipole nature, i.e. according to their charge in the cell membrane. After exceeding
a critical value of approx. 1 V of trans-membrane potential, there is a repulsion which may occurs
between the charge carrying molecules that form pores in weak areas of the membrane, and therefore,
it causes drastic increase in permeability. For PEF treatment of plant products, a simple circuit with
exponential decay pulses is used. The plant materials were placed in a treatment chamber, which
consists of two electrodes. The PEF process can be operated in either continuous or batch mode based
on the treatment chamber design. The effectiveness of PEF treatment depends on the process
parameters, such as field strength, specific energy input, pulse number, treatment temperature, and
properties of the materials to be treated.

Supercritical fluid: Supercritical state is achieved when the temperature and the pressure of a
substance is raised over its critical value. The raw plant material is loaded into the extraction vessel.
The extraction vessel is equipped with temperature controllers and pressure valve at both inlet and
outlet to keep desired extraction conditions. The extraction vessel is pressurized with the fluid with
the help of a pump. The fluid and the dissolved compounds are transported to separators where the
salvation powder of fluid is decreased by decreasing the pressure or increasing the temperature of the
fluid. The product is collected via valve is located in the lower part of separator.
Enzyme hydrolysis: Some phytochemicals in the plant matrices are dispersed in cell cytoplasm,
and some compounds are retained in the polysaccharide lignin network by hydrogen bonding or
hydrophobic interactions, which cannot be extracted with a solvent in a routine extraction process.
Enzymatic pre-treatment has been considered as a novel and an effective way to release bounded
compounds and also to increase overall yield . The addition of specific enzymes such as cellulose , α-
amylase, and pectinase during extraction enhances recovery by breaking the cell wall and hydrolysing
the structural polysaccharides and lipid bodies.

Conclusion:
Finally, we can conclude that antioxidants in food play a vital role in modern technology in the
conservation of food. Antioxidants are added to the products to prevent oxidation, and naturally
present compounds, which is present in foods and tissue. Natural foods are promising sources for
novel therapeutic agents for prevention and treatment of several severe diseases. Natural antioxidants
are related to potential health benefits which associated to the protection of human body against
development of diseases like cancers, cardiovascular diseases, osteoporosis and neurodegenerative
diseases.