Web Release Date: May 19,
Lipophilic and Hydrophilic Antioxidant Capacities of Common Foods in the United States
and#
Arkansas Children's Nutrition Center and Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, 1120 Marshall Street, Little Rock, Arkansas 72202, and Food Composition Laboratory and Nutrient Data Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville Human Nutrition Center, 10300 Baltimore Avenue, Beltsville, Maryland 20705
Received for review February 23, 2004. Revised manuscript received April 12, 2004. Accepted April 14, 2004. Mention of a trade name, proprietary product, or specific equipment does not constitute a guarantee by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and does not imply its approval to the exclusion of other products that may be suitable. This research was supported in part by the USDA, ARS, Produce for Better Health Foundation, and Quaker Oats.
Abstract:
Both lipophilic and hydrophilic antioxidant capacities were determined using the oxygen radical
absorbance capacity (ORACFL) assay with fluorescein as the fluorescent probe and 2,2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride as a peroxyl radical generator on over 100 different kinds of foods,
including fruits, vegetables, nuts, dried fruits, spices, cereals, infant, and other foods. Most of the
foods were collected from four different regions and during two different seasons in U.S. markets.
Total phenolics of each sample were also measured using the Folin-Ciocalteu reagent. Hydrophilic
ORACFL values (H-ORACFL) ranged from 0.87 to 2641 
mol of Trolox equivalents (TE)/g among all
of the foods, whereas lipophilic ORACFL values (L-ORACFL) ranged from 0.07 to 1611 mol of TE/g.
Generally, L-ORACFL values were <10% of the H-ORACFL values except for a very few samples.
Total antioxidant capacity was calculated by combining L-ORACFL and H-ORACFL. Differences of
ORACFL values in fruits and vegetables from different seasons and regions were relatively large for
some foods but could not be analyzed in detail because of the sampling scheme. Two different
processing methods, cooking and peeling, were used on selected foods to evaluate the impact of
processing on ORACFL. The data demonstrated that processing can have significant effects on
ORACFL. Considering all of the foods analyzed, the relationship between TP and H-ORACFL showed
a very weak correlation. Total hydrophilic and lipophilic antioxidant capacity intakes were calculated
to be 5558 and 166 mol of TE/day, respectively, on the basis of data from the USDA Continuing
Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (1994-1996).
Keywords: Antioxidants; hydrophilic; lipophilic; ORACFL; total phenolics; fruits; vegetables; nuts; dried fruits; spices; baby foods; chocolate; cereal
Download the full text: PDF | HTML
