Carotenoid values of selected plant foods common to Southern Burkina Faso, West Africa

Six edible plants common to West African diet were analyzed for vitamin‐A precursors α‐carotene, ß‐carotene, ß‐cryptoxanthin, and cis‐isomers of ß‐carotene. They were fresh leaves of Adansonia digitata, Ceiba pentandra. Hibiscus sabdarifa, and Vigna sp., dry leaves of Adansonia digitata, and flower and seed pulp of Adansonia digitata, Bixa orellano, Hibiscus sabdarifa, and Parkiia biglobosa. Plants were chosen because they were important to diet and were colored, with dark green, pink, orange, and yellow preferred. Color was assumed to reflect carotentoid concentrations. Four of the six were wild edible species, two were cultivated. Both fresh and dry samples were analyzed. On a weight basis, fresh samples contained twice the carotenoid content as dry samples. Colors did not reflect carotene content for the analyzed carotenoids. Fresh kapok leaves (Ceiba pentandra) contained twice the ß‐carotene content of the reference food fresh spinach (Spinacea oleracea).

Key words:

• Africa
• ß‐carotene
• Burkina Faso
• carotenoids
• nutritional blindness
• vitamin A deficiency