Betalains: Natural plant pigments with potential application in functional foods

Ashwini Gengatharan; Gary A Dykes; Wee Sim Choo

doi:10.1016/j.lwt.2015.06.052

Betalains: Natural plant pigments with potential application in functional foods

Ashwini Gengatharan, Gary A Dykes, Wee Sim Choo

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review

145 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Betalains are plant derived natural pigments that are presently gaining popularity for use as natural colorants in the food industry. The growing interest of consumers in the aesthetic, nutritional and safety aspects of food has increased the demand for natural pigments such as betalains to be used as alternative colorants in food products. Although betalains from red beetroot are one of the most widely used food colorant, betalains are not as well studied as compared to other natural pigments such as anthocyanins, carotenoids or chlorophylls. This paper reviews the pharmacological properties, such as antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-lipidemic and antimicrobial activity of betalains derived from sources such as red beetroot, amaranth, prickly pear and red pitahaya, for potential application as functional foods.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	645 - 649
Number of pages	5
Journal	LWT
Volume	64
Issue number	2
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2015.06.052
Publication status	Published - 2015

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title = "Betalains: Natural plant pigments with potential application in functional foods",

abstract = "Betalains are plant derived natural pigments that are presently gaining popularity for use as natural colorants in the food industry. The growing interest of consumers in the aesthetic, nutritional and safety aspects of food has increased the demand for natural pigments such as betalains to be used as alternative colorants in food products. Although betalains from red beetroot are one of the most widely used food colorant, betalains are not as well studied as compared to other natural pigments such as anthocyanins, carotenoids or chlorophylls. This paper reviews the pharmacological properties, such as antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-lipidemic and antimicrobial activity of betalains derived from sources such as red beetroot, amaranth, prickly pear and red pitahaya, for potential application as functional foods.",

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AU - Dykes, Gary A

AU - Choo, Wee Sim

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N2 - Betalains are plant derived natural pigments that are presently gaining popularity for use as natural colorants in the food industry. The growing interest of consumers in the aesthetic, nutritional and safety aspects of food has increased the demand for natural pigments such as betalains to be used as alternative colorants in food products. Although betalains from red beetroot are one of the most widely used food colorant, betalains are not as well studied as compared to other natural pigments such as anthocyanins, carotenoids or chlorophylls. This paper reviews the pharmacological properties, such as antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-lipidemic and antimicrobial activity of betalains derived from sources such as red beetroot, amaranth, prickly pear and red pitahaya, for potential application as functional foods.

AB - Betalains are plant derived natural pigments that are presently gaining popularity for use as natural colorants in the food industry. The growing interest of consumers in the aesthetic, nutritional and safety aspects of food has increased the demand for natural pigments such as betalains to be used as alternative colorants in food products. Although betalains from red beetroot are one of the most widely used food colorant, betalains are not as well studied as compared to other natural pigments such as anthocyanins, carotenoids or chlorophylls. This paper reviews the pharmacological properties, such as antioxidant, anti-cancer, anti-lipidemic and antimicrobial activity of betalains derived from sources such as red beetroot, amaranth, prickly pear and red pitahaya, for potential application as functional foods.

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