A research study has found that 34 types of phenolic acid derivatives with excellent antioxidant effects are contained in domestically produced sweet potatoes.

Sweet potatoes are one of the widely consumed staple crops worldwide, and it has been reported that phenolic acids in sweet potatoes have excellent antioxidant effects, such as inhibiting cellular oxidation. However, there has been a lack of research identifying the types of phenolic acid derivatives and comparing their contents in domestically produced sweet potatoes. In response, a research team from the Rural Development Administration conducted a detailed analysis of domestically produced sweet potatoes.

 

According to the research, the purple sweet potato variety 'Shinjami' developed by the National Institute of Food and Drug Safety Evaluation contains a total of 34 phenolic acid derivatives, including isochlorogenic acid. Among them, six hydroxybenzoic acid derivatives were identified in sweet potatoes for the first time in the world. The research team named the newly identified compounds Nasipomic acid, Daripomic acid, and others, and announced their findings.

The purple sweet potato Shinjammi contains 83.8 mg of phenolic acids per 100 g of dry weight, which is 3.2 times higher than the chestnut sweet potato 'Jinhongmi' (26.3 mg) and 6.6 times higher than the pumpkin sweet potato 'Juhwangmi' (12.7 mg).

 

In previous experimental results from the research teams of Changshin University Department of Food and Nutrition and Gyeongnam University Department of Food and Nutritional Life Science, it was also shown that the antioxidant components (phenolic compounds) vary by sweet potato variety, with purple sweet potatoes, pumpkin sweet potatoes, and regular sweet potatoes in that order having higher amounts.

 

The purple sweet potato's excellent antioxidant power is thanks to the antioxidant compound 'anthocyanin'.

 

Anthocyanins are pigments belonging to the polyphenol family that display a red color. When ingested into the body, they help eliminate oxidative substances produced by active oxygen and have an anti-inflammatory effect. The reason why purple sweet potato flesh has a deep purple color is because it contains a high amount of anthocyanins (3.8 to 4.7 mg per gram). If you want to consume more antioxidant components, eating purple sweet potatoes is more beneficial than yellow-colored regular sweet potatoes.

 

Yoo Sun-mi, Director of the Food and Nutrition Division at the Rural Development Administration, said, "This research is an essential process for securing dietary information to improve public health," and "We will continuously build basic data so that our agricultural products can be fully utilized in creating a healthy dietary culture."

 

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Next year, I should tell them to plant purple sweet potatoes.

Is this sweet potato again??

 

I should ask my parents' house.

 

Purple sweet potato has excellent antioxidant effects.