Investigation of total phenolic contents and total antioxidant capacities of fruit bars and their extracts

Fruit bars are the products manufactured to meet the daily nutritional needs of consumers by combining various fruits with natural sugars, vitamins and minerals. The objective of this study was to investigate the total phenolic Contents (TPC) and total antioxidant capacities (TAC) of fruit-based bars and their extracts. Therefore, a total of 15 fruit bars, 5 each from 3 different domestic brands were collected. The collected samples and their extracts were analyzed for TPC (mg GAE/100 g) by Folin–Ciocalteu and TAC (mg TE/100g) by DPPH methods in pre- and post extracts, respectively. The results showed that the average TFI and TAC values of the samples were determined to be 6.87 ±1.92 mg GAE/100g and 14.45 ±0.55 mg TE/100g, while those of their extracts were found to be 4.88 ±0.21 mg GAE/100g and 4.92 ±0.53 mg TE/100g, respectively. The statistical evaluation revealed that there was a significant correlation between TIF and TAC values of the fruit bars and their extracts (p<0.05). Overall, we concluded that the bioavailability fate of TFC and TAC as well as their cytotoxic effects in the snack fruit bar products should be investigated in detail at cellular level by in vitro and molecular-based techniques.