In vitro Evaluation of Ca, Cu, and Mg Bioaccessibility in Fresh and Dried Fruits

Abstract

In this work, the bioaccessibility of Ca, Mg, and Cu in commercial dried fruits was evaluated in vitro, and compared with that in the corresponding fresh fruits. In fresh fruits, the bioaccessibility of Ca was found to be between 72.3 and 92.2%, while Mg bioaccessibility was observed to be in the range 59.5-66.3%. In dried fruits, the bioaccessibility of Mg was approximately 45%, while that of Ca was in the range of 12.2-52%. The average bioaccessibility of Ca in banana (dried fruit) was lower (12.2%) than papaya (22.9%) and apple (52%). In addition, for all samples, Cu content was below the limit of detection (LOD) (1.12 μg g-1), suggesting that Cu is present in the researched fruits in a chemical form that is poorly absorbed by the human body. Considering these results, it is possible to conclude that the bioaccessibility of Ca and Mg was significantly lower in dried fruits than in fresh fruits, whereas Cu bioaccessibility was below the LOD of the method. These results demonstrate that the dehydration process negatively affected the bioaccessibility of all elements evaluated in this study, reducing the amount of nutrients that can be absorbed by the human body.