A comparative review on the anti-nutritional factors of herbal tea concoctions and their reduction strategies
Authors
Neeta Pathaw
Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Imphal, Manipur, India
Baby Wangkhem
College of Agriculture, Central Agricultural University, Imphal, Manipur, India
Wangkhem Chanu
Department of Agriculture, Himalayan University, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh, India
Huirem Devi
College of Agriculture, Central Agricultural University, Imphal, Manipur, India
Sumitra Phurailatpam
Multi Technology Testing Centre and Vocational Training Centre, College of Agriculture, Central Agricultural University, Imphal, Manipur, India
Sapam Monteshori
Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Imphal, Manipur, India
Jyotsana Sanasam
Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Imphal, Manipur, India
Redina Sapam
Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Imphal, Manipur, India
Konjengbam Devi
Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Imphal, Manipur, India
Naorem Mangang
Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Research Complex for North Eastern Hill Region, Imphal, Manipur, India
Tea is an important beverage consumed worldwide. Of the different types of tea available, herbal tea is an important beverage consumed owing to its popularity as a drink and stress relieving factors, several different herbal concoctions made from seeds, leaves, or roots are currently consumed and sold as herbal teas. The herbal teas are not the usual tea but “tisanes.” They are caffeine free and popular for their medicinal property or immune boosters. Herbal tea formulations are popularly sold and consumed by millions owing to their health benefits as they are rich in antioxidants and minerals. However, plants are also known to contain toxic and anti-nutritional factors. Anti-nutritional factors are known to interfere with the metabolic process and hamper the absorption of important nutrients in the body. These anti-nutritional factors include saponins, tannins, alkaloids, oxalates, lectins, goitrogens, cyanogens, and lethogens. These chemicals are known to have deleterious effects on human health. Therefore, it is important to understand and assess the merits and demerits before consumption. Also, several techniques are currently used to process and reduce the anti-nutrients in foods. This review is focused on comparing the contents of various anti-nutritional factors in some underutilized plants of North-East India used as herbal tea along with processing methods that can be used to reduce the level of these anti-nutrients.
Keywords: anti-nutritional, herbal tea, underutilized plants, saponins, phytic acid, alkaloids, anti-nutrients
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