Okoth Judith Kanensi, Ochola Sophie Atieno, Gikonyo Nicholas K, Makokha Anselimo
Department of Food Science and Technology Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology P.O. Box 62000-00200 Nairobi Kenya.
Department of Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics Kenyatta University P.O. Box 43844-00100 Nairobi Kenya.
Food Sci Nutr. 2016 Apr 22;5(1):86-93. doi: 10.1002/fsn3.367. eCollection 2017 Jan.
Thin porridge from cereals and starchy tubers is a common complementary food in Sub Saharan Africa. It may be high in antinutrients, low in energy, and nutrient density hence inadequate in providing infants' high energy and nutrients requirements per unit body weight. Consequently, undernourishment levels among children under 5 years are high. Therefore, there is need to avail nutrient-dense complementary foods especially for children in low-resource settings. The study was aimed at developing a nutrient-dense complementary food from amaranth and sorghum grains. Amaranth grain, a pseudocereal, though rarely used as a complementary food in Kenya has a higher nutritional quality than other staples. Plant-based foods are known to have high levels of antinutrients. Steeping and germination were used to reduce the levels of antinutrients and enhance the bioavailability of minerals in the grains. Various steeped and germinated amaranth and sorghum grains formulations were made to find the ratio with the highest nutrient content and lowest antinutrient levels. The 90% amaranth-sorghum grains formulation had significantly ( = 32.133, < 0.05) higher energy (5 kcal per g on dry weight basis) than the other formulations and a protein content of 14.4%. This is higher than the estimated protein needs from complementary foods even for a 12-23 months child of low breast milk intake (9.1 g/d). Antinutrients could not be detected which could imply enhanced nutrient bioavailability. Therefore, a nutrient-dense complementary food product was developed from steeped and germinated amaranth and sorghum grains with 90% amaranth grain. In ready to eat form, it would give an energy content of 1.7 kcal per g (dilution of 1:2 amaranth-sorghum flour to water) and 1.2 kcal per g (dilution of 1:4 amaranth-sorghum flour to water). It can be used as a nutrient-dense complementary food and for other vulnerable groups.
谷物和淀粉类块茎制成的稀粥是撒哈拉以南非洲常见的辅食。它可能抗营养物质含量高、能量低且营养密度低，因此无法满足婴儿每单位体重对高能量和营养物质的需求。结果，5岁以下儿童的营养不良水平很高。因此，有必要提供营养丰富的辅食，特别是为资源匮乏地区的儿童。这项研究旨在用苋菜和高粱谷物开发一种营养丰富的辅食。苋菜谷物，一种假谷物，虽然在肯尼亚很少用作辅食，但营养价值高于其他主食。已知植物性食物抗营养物质含量高。浸泡和发芽被用来降低抗营养物质的含量，并提高谷物中矿物质的生物利用率。制作了各种浸泡和发芽的苋菜和高粱谷物配方，以找到营养成分最高、抗营养物质含量最低的比例。90%苋菜-高粱谷物配方的能量（以干重计每克5千卡）显著高于其他配方（F = 32.133，P < 0.05），蛋白质含量为14.4%。即使对于母乳摄入量低的12 - 23个月大的儿童，这也高于辅食估计的蛋白质需求量（9.1克/天）。未检测到抗营养物质，这可能意味着营养物质的生物利用率提高。因此，用浸泡和发芽的90%苋菜谷物和高粱谷物开发出了一种营养丰富的辅食产品。在即食形式下，它的能量含量为每克1.7千卡（苋菜-高粱粉与水按1:2稀释）和每克1.2千卡（苋菜-高粱粉与水按1:4稀释）。它可以用作营养丰富的辅食，也适用于其他弱势群体。
