Mineral Compositions of Eight Common Spices

Abstract

Eight common spices have been studied for their mineral compositions using inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) after acid digestion. The seeds of the following spices were used for analysis: coriander, cumin, anise, nigella, mustard, carum, black pepper, and fenugreek. Average elemental compositions of spices seeds were reported using robust Z-score statistic. Fourteen elements were considered, which include heavy metals like iron (Fe), manganese (Mn), zinc (Zn), copper (Cu), cobalt (Co), nickel (Ni), molybdenum (Mo), lead (Pb), and chromium (Cr), alkaline earth metals like calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg), lighter element like aluminum (Al) and non-metals like silicon (Si) and phosphorus (P). A very strong linear correlation exists between Fe and Al contents in the spices. Zinc also correlates well with iron. This study provides a reliable account of the endogenic concentrations of a number of common elements including heavy metals present in these spices.

Keywords:

• Mineral composition
• Spices
• ICP-OES
• Z-score statistic

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Prof. P. Ramachandra Rao, Director, National Metallurgical Laboratory, Jamshedpur for his kind permission to publish this work.