Bms1027 Non-Nutrients

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What is a non-nutrient?

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A substance that occurs in the diet that has advantageous health benefits but is not essential for survival. Can be toxic at high doses.

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Phenols and polyphenols

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- products of secondary metabolism of plants.
- produced in response to stress (as pathogen defence against fungi/bacteria, UV light protection, antioxidants)
- can cause astringency due to binding to salivary glands which makes some plant inedible. Also binds metal ions which can cause deficiency.
- structure: one or more benzene rings with phenol (OH) side chain.

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Phenols and polyphenols - Flavanols

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- found in redwines, apples, black tea.

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Phenols and polyphenols - Flavonols

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- found in onions, broccoli, apples, green and black tea

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Phenols and polyphenols - Flavone

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- found in celery, pepper, olives, citrus fruit, parsley.

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Phenols and polyphenols - Anthocyanidins

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- found in strawberries, raspberries, eggplant, red wine, red grapes

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Phenols and polyphenols - Isoflavones

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- found in soy products (flour, beans, milk, souce etc), tofu

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Phenols and polyphenols - Daily intakes

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- flavanols 100mg/day
- flavonols 3-64mg/day
- anthocyanidins 200mg/day
- isoflavones 50mg/day in east, as low as 1mg/day in UK

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Phenols and polyphenols - adsorption

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- attach to sugars to present as glycosides which can interact with transporters in the gut to get absorbed by the small intestine
- if the sugar is too large they become non-interacting and pass into large intestine where they are broken down by bacteria in gut flora.

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Phenols and polyphenols - epidemiology

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- use info from cross sectional and longitudinal studies to identify any health benefit.
- eg Elderly's study found polyphenols inversely associated with CHD with a 68% reduction in risk with people consuming over 19mg/day. Reduction in stroke risk of 54% with 18-28mg/day consumption, and 73% for over 28mg/day
- thought to act as antioxidant by scavenging free radicals and supporting/protecting other antioxidants (vitamins etc)
- also bind metal ions which can cause lipid oxidation
- lowers intake of carbohydrates which can lower risk of type II diabetes.
- helps maintain a healthy gut flora.

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Terpenes

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- fat soluble unbranched 5c chain which join together to form large structures
- triterpenes: 6 unit C30 structure, eg carotenoids
- tetraterpenes: 8 unit C40 structure eg sterols/stanols
- coffee diterpenes: C20 structures eg caffestol, kahweol.

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Sulphur containing compounds

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- Alliaceae containing foods eg onions, chives, garlic
- organic disulphides responsible for hot taste and watering of the eyes, produces enzymatically when tissue is damaged, can be decreased by pickling/cooking to inhibit enzymes
- Brassicas foods such as cabbage, broccoli, sprouts, cress etc
- glucosinolates and isothiocyanates produced enzymatically when tissue is damaged, causes taste and odour, also thought to reduce risk of some cancers (sulphorophan)

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Alkaloids (nitrogen containing)

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- caffeine, mild stimulant in tea, coffee, chocolate, cola etc. Prevents sleep and encouraged wakefulness, can elevate blood pressure. not recommended for pregnant women as can cross placenta.
- quinine, antimalarial properties, found in tonic water, high dose can have negative effect on eyes
- solanum alkaloids, in green potatoes, typically 1-15mg/100g, aids in pest and disease resistance in the plant, can make bitter taste and high dose can cause GI symptoms, cardiovascular/respiratory depression and occasionally death.