IJFANS International Journal of Food and Nutritional Sciences

ISSN PRINT 2319 1775 Online 2320-7876

Nutritional Abundance of Purslane: Assessment and Challenges

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Manju Verma , Kaushalendra Kumar , Neha Sharma

Abstract

Purpose: Purslane is a weed considered both grass and field crops and widely found in tropical and sub- tropical areas. It is traditionally used in Asian origin and widely accepted globally for its medicinal purpose and grows effectively on poor soils with less irrigation during germination and seedling. The significant potential of purslane in context of availability, pharmacology, nutraceutical properties and agriculture easiness emphasize on the vigorous investigations and assessment of purslane as compared to other similar crops. This review focuses on the current update on nutritional status of purslane and challenges in its wide acceptance. Method: The online literature was searched using PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar and Web of Science. Result: Purslane is known for its endearing nutraceutical properties and one of the richest ω-3 fatty acid source among green plants. Despite of the reported antinutrient activity, the nutritional abundance of purslane is comparable to other conventional green edible crops in addition to its captivating pharmacological uses. Conclusion: Purslane is a promising wonder crop due to its high nutritional value and acceptance into the human diet. Usage of purslane is restricted by its anti-nutritional content especially oxalate levels and its effect on the absorption of other nutrients but processing methods like boiling, blanching can be applied as remedial measure in reducing the antinutritional content

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