EVALUATION OF NUTRIENT AND MINERAL CONTENTS OF Leptadenia hastata FLOWER

Since antiquity, wild plant products have been used by humans for food and medicine. However, negligible information is available regarding their nutritional potential. The principal aim of the present study was to assess the nutritional and mineral potential of Leptadenia hastata flowers. Standard methods of (AOAC, 2005) were employed for the proximate analysis. The mineral contents (calcium, magnesium and iron) were determined using AAS. Sodium and potassium were determined using atomic emission spectrometry and phosphorus was determined by colorimetry. The results of the proximate analysis indicated that carbohydrate content was the highest at (38.64 %) followed by crude protein at (15.75 %) while crude fat had the lowest content at (9.60%), crude fibre content at (12.40 %), moisture content (13.65%) and ash content (9.96%). The results of Mineral Analysis (mg/100g) were: potassium (694.28), sodium (24.36), calcium (254.12), iron (9.28), magnesium (58.75) and phosphorus (188.75). The results obtained from this study suggest that the Leptadenia hastata flowers have the potential to be used as sources of nutrients in alleviating macro and micro-nutrient deficiencies. Domestication of this plant can improve the health status of humans and lower animals since it contains a reasonable amount of carbohydrates, proteins, and a trace amount of other classes of food, plus some vital amounts of macro minerals, especially calcium and potassium.