No abstract

Research data on the nutritional benefits to babies of consuming organic foods compared with their non‐organic counterparts is scarce. The objectives of the present study were first, to determine the β‐carotene content of organic and non‐organic baby food products; and, second, to compare the bioaccessibility of β‐carotene from these foods. Carotenoid bioaccessibility (%) is defined as the proportion of ingested carotenoid(s) that are available for absorption in the gut after digestion. Three organic (A‐C) and three non‐organic (D‐F) chicken and vegetable baby foods for babies of 4+ months of age were subjected to a simulated human gastrointestinal digestion procedure. Within each group (i.e. organic or non‐organic), there were large differences in β‐carotene content. For example, β‐carotene content of the organic dinners ranged from 8.8 to 534.9 μg/100 g. Similarly, non‐organic dinner F had significantly greater amounts of β‐carotene than the other t+wo non‐organic dinners tested. There was no difference in the average β‐carotene content between the organic and non‐organic foods. β‐Carotene bioaccessibility was greater from organic dinner C (46.4%) compared with organic dinners A and B (P<0.05). On average, β‐carotene had greater % bioaccessibility (P<0.05) from the non‐organic (41.4%) than organic (30.8%) chicken and vegetable dinners. Our findings show that β‐carotene content reflected the vegetable composition of the baby meals. To conclude, the organic dinners tested were not superior to the non‐organic foods in terms of β‐carotene content and bioaccessibility.This research was funded by Science Foundation Ireland.