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Nutritional and Medicinal Qualities of Sweetpotato Tops and Leaves Shahidul Islam Professor Plant Science Sweetpotato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam] is the sixth most important food crop in the world, and new uses for this crop have been identified. Sweetpotato is one of the crops selected by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to be grown in a controlled ecological life support system as a primary food source. Recent studies show that sweetpotato contains such functional components as polyphenols, anthocyanins and dietary fiber, which are important for human health.
Sweetpotato roots are a good source of carbohydrates, while sweet potato tops (leaves and stems) contain additional nutritional components in much higher concentrations than in many other commercial vegetables. Sweet potato leaves are cooked as a vegetable in many parts of the world. They are rich in vitamin B, ßcarotene, iron, calcium, zinc and protein, and the crop is more tolerant of diseases, pests and high moisture than many other leafy vegetables grown in the tropics. Because sweet potato tops can be harvested several times a year, their annual yield is much higher than many other green vegetables.
Sweetpotato is one of the most important summer food crops in the southern United States. It is a versatile plant. For example, it is used as food, as livestock feed and for starch and alcohol production. The tips can be cooked together with other ingredients in various dishes, or they can be dried and stored for later use as a boiled or fried vegetable. Researchers in North Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, California, Texas and Alabama are contributing to the value of sweetpotato by finding new uses. Arkansas is not a major sweet potatog rowing state. Although soil and climate are favorable for production, Arkansas growers cannot compete economically with neighboring producer states North Carolina, Sweet potato leaves Leaves with stem
Louisiana and Mississippi. Only recently have and B. Sweetpotato is also an important source of vitsome smallscale farmers in south Arkansas become amin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, ascorbic acid and interested and have planted about 5,000 acres of many other functional compounds (Woolfe, 1992). sweetpotato, mostly for fresh market. Nutritional Value Sweetpotato may become a profitable leafy vegetable crop in Arkansas if appropriate varieties were available or could be developed. Several researchers report that sweetpotato leaves are an excellent source of antioxidative polyphenolics, among them anthocyanins and phenolics, and are superior to other commercial vegetables. The nutritional value of sweetpotato leaves is gaining recognition, as the understanding between diet and health increases. Sweetpotato leaves with their high nutritive value and antioxidants may become an excellent leafy vegetable.
Cultivation for Sweetpotato Tip Production Usually, sweetpotato roots are planted 2 inches deep and about 2 inches apart (density of 5 cm × 5 cm) in a greenhouse/polyethylene house in late winter/early spring (i.e., during late February until early March in the southern United States). After two months, harvest tips every 10 to 15 days. In the southern United States, generally all greens (tops) may be harvested at least six times a year – the end of April, the end of May, the end of June, the end of July, the beginning of September and the end of October. Fertilizer Apply chemical fertilizer (NPK = 888) at a rate of 500 lb/A, and use compost at a rate of 8,000 lb/A in volume. After each harvest, apply 150 lb/A ammonium sulfate as an additional fertilizer. Yield The average tip (average of 10 genotypes) yield is 11,000 lb/A (Villareal et al., 1982). Chemical Composition Sweetpotato roots and tops possess a variety of chemical compounds relevant to human health.
About 80 to 90 percent of sweetpotato dry matter is made up of carbohydrates, consisting mainly of starch and sugars with lesser amounts of pectins, hemicelluloses and cellulose. On average, starch constitutes 60 to 70 percent of the dry matter, but the proportion of starch to other carbohydrates varies greatly. Sweetpotato also contains protein (0.46% to 2.93%), dietary fiber (0.49% to 4.71%), lipid (0.06% to 0.48%) and ash (0.31% to 1.06%). It contains essential mineral nutrients such as Ca, P, Mg, Na, K, S, Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn, Al Depending on varieties and growing conditions, sweetpotato leaves are comparable to spinach in nutrient content. The average mineral and vitamin content in a recently developed cultivar, Suioh, is 117 mg calcium, 1.8 mg iron, 3.5 mg carotene, 7.2 mg vitamin C, 1.6 mg vitamin E and 0.56 mg vitamin K/100 g fresh weight of leaves. Levels of iron, calcium and carotene rank among the top, as compared with other major vegetables.
Sweetpotato leaves are also rich in vitamin B, ßcarotene, iron, calcium, zinc and protein. Studies have shown that sweetpotato leaves contain as many vitamins, minerals and other nutrients as spinach. The content of these nutrients differs according to harvesting period and variety. Oxalic acid poses a problem when using sweetpotato leaves as food, but its content does not change greatly according to the harvesting time and is less than onefifth that of spinach. For these reasons, the use of sweetpotato leaves as a vegetable and for food processing should definitely be encouraged. As a crop, sweet potato is more tolerant of diseases, pests and high moisture than many other leafy vegetables grown in the tropics. Sweetpotato leaves are an excellent source of antioxidative polyphenolics, among them anthocyanins and phenolic acids such as caffeic, monocaffeoylquinic (chlorogenic), dicaffeoylquinic and tricaffeoylquinic acids, and are superior in this regard to other commercial vegetables (Ishiguro et al., 2004). Polyphenols Compositions Sweetpotato leaves represent at least 15 anthocyanin and 6 polyphenolic compounds. These biologically active compounds possess multifaceted action, including antioxidation, antimutagenicity, antiinflammation and anticarcinogenesis.
Sweet potato leaves contain more total polyphenols than any other commercial vegetables, including sweetpotato roots and potato tubers. Antioxidative and Antimutagenicity Cancers occur through such processes as initiation, promotion and progression in body cells. Initiation is a kind of mutation that occurs in cancer and anticancer genes. Thus, controlling the gene mutation brought about by the carcinogens leads to cancer prevention. Sweetpotato leaves are a good supplementary resource of antioxidants and antimutagenic compounds. An investigation was conducted to examine the effects of 82 kinds of vegetable juice and plant components on the division and multiplication of cancer cells, and it was found that sweetpotato has especially high cancer checking rates.
https://www.uapb.edu/sites/www/Uploads/SAFHS/FSA-6135.pdf
Sweetpotato roots are a good source of carbohydrates, while sweet potato tops (leaves and stems) contain additional nutritional components in much higher concentrations than in many other commercial vegetables. Sweet potato leaves are cooked as a vegetable in many parts of the world. They are rich in vitamin B, ßcarotene, iron, calcium, zinc and protein, and the crop is more tolerant of diseases, pests and high moisture than many other leafy vegetables grown in the tropics. Because sweet potato tops can be harvested several times a year, their annual yield is much higher than many other green vegetables.
Sweetpotato is one of the most important summer food crops in the southern United States. It is a versatile plant. For example, it is used as food, as livestock feed and for starch and alcohol production. The tips can be cooked together with other ingredients in various dishes, or they can be dried and stored for later use as a boiled or fried vegetable. Researchers in North Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, California, Texas and Alabama are contributing to the value of sweetpotato by finding new uses. Arkansas is not a major sweet potatog rowing state. Although soil and climate are favorable for production, Arkansas growers cannot compete economically with neighboring producer states North Carolina, Sweet potato leaves Leaves with stem
Louisiana and Mississippi. Only recently have and B. Sweetpotato is also an important source of vitsome smallscale farmers in south Arkansas become amin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, ascorbic acid and interested and have planted about 5,000 acres of many other functional compounds (Woolfe, 1992). sweetpotato, mostly for fresh market. Nutritional Value Sweetpotato may become a profitable leafy vegetable crop in Arkansas if appropriate varieties were available or could be developed. Several researchers report that sweetpotato leaves are an excellent source of antioxidative polyphenolics, among them anthocyanins and phenolics, and are superior to other commercial vegetables. The nutritional value of sweetpotato leaves is gaining recognition, as the understanding between diet and health increases. Sweetpotato leaves with their high nutritive value and antioxidants may become an excellent leafy vegetable.
Cultivation for Sweetpotato Tip Production Usually, sweetpotato roots are planted 2 inches deep and about 2 inches apart (density of 5 cm × 5 cm) in a greenhouse/polyethylene house in late winter/early spring (i.e., during late February until early March in the southern United States). After two months, harvest tips every 10 to 15 days. In the southern United States, generally all greens (tops) may be harvested at least six times a year – the end of April, the end of May, the end of June, the end of July, the beginning of September and the end of October. Fertilizer Apply chemical fertilizer (NPK = 888) at a rate of 500 lb/A, and use compost at a rate of 8,000 lb/A in volume. After each harvest, apply 150 lb/A ammonium sulfate as an additional fertilizer. Yield The average tip (average of 10 genotypes) yield is 11,000 lb/A (Villareal et al., 1982). Chemical Composition Sweetpotato roots and tops possess a variety of chemical compounds relevant to human health.
About 80 to 90 percent of sweetpotato dry matter is made up of carbohydrates, consisting mainly of starch and sugars with lesser amounts of pectins, hemicelluloses and cellulose. On average, starch constitutes 60 to 70 percent of the dry matter, but the proportion of starch to other carbohydrates varies greatly. Sweetpotato also contains protein (0.46% to 2.93%), dietary fiber (0.49% to 4.71%), lipid (0.06% to 0.48%) and ash (0.31% to 1.06%). It contains essential mineral nutrients such as Ca, P, Mg, Na, K, S, Fe, Cu, Zn, Mn, Al Depending on varieties and growing conditions, sweetpotato leaves are comparable to spinach in nutrient content. The average mineral and vitamin content in a recently developed cultivar, Suioh, is 117 mg calcium, 1.8 mg iron, 3.5 mg carotene, 7.2 mg vitamin C, 1.6 mg vitamin E and 0.56 mg vitamin K/100 g fresh weight of leaves. Levels of iron, calcium and carotene rank among the top, as compared with other major vegetables.
Sweetpotato leaves are also rich in vitamin B, ßcarotene, iron, calcium, zinc and protein. Studies have shown that sweetpotato leaves contain as many vitamins, minerals and other nutrients as spinach. The content of these nutrients differs according to harvesting period and variety. Oxalic acid poses a problem when using sweetpotato leaves as food, but its content does not change greatly according to the harvesting time and is less than onefifth that of spinach. For these reasons, the use of sweetpotato leaves as a vegetable and for food processing should definitely be encouraged. As a crop, sweet potato is more tolerant of diseases, pests and high moisture than many other leafy vegetables grown in the tropics. Sweetpotato leaves are an excellent source of antioxidative polyphenolics, among them anthocyanins and phenolic acids such as caffeic, monocaffeoylquinic (chlorogenic), dicaffeoylquinic and tricaffeoylquinic acids, and are superior in this regard to other commercial vegetables (Ishiguro et al., 2004). Polyphenols Compositions Sweetpotato leaves represent at least 15 anthocyanin and 6 polyphenolic compounds. These biologically active compounds possess multifaceted action, including antioxidation, antimutagenicity, antiinflammation and anticarcinogenesis.
Sweet potato leaves contain more total polyphenols than any other commercial vegetables, including sweetpotato roots and potato tubers. Antioxidative and Antimutagenicity Cancers occur through such processes as initiation, promotion and progression in body cells. Initiation is a kind of mutation that occurs in cancer and anticancer genes. Thus, controlling the gene mutation brought about by the carcinogens leads to cancer prevention. Sweetpotato leaves are a good supplementary resource of antioxidants and antimutagenic compounds. An investigation was conducted to examine the effects of 82 kinds of vegetable juice and plant components on the division and multiplication of cancer cells, and it was found that sweetpotato has especially high cancer checking rates.
https://www.uapb.edu/sites/www/Uploads/SAFHS/FSA-6135.pdf