This study aimed to determine the effect of cooking on phytate content and the inhibitory effects of phytate on the bioavailability of minerals in eight Malaysian soy based dishes. Phytate was analyzed by using anion-exchange chromatography while minerals were analyzed by using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer. Molar ratios were obtained by dividing the mole of phytate to minerals. Phytate content was reduced in cooked dishes compared to the raw ones but it was not significantly different (P > 0.05). Raw, cooked and whole dish soy products contained 257.14-900.00, 182.14-803.57 and 289.29-910.71 mg/100 g phytate, respectively. Boiling and steaming have reduced most phytate content in the food samples. Molar ratios for phytate/minerals in these samples (phytate/Ca >0.17; phytate/Fe >1) indicated that phytate content inhibited the absorption of calcium and iron. However, the ratio for Ca × phytate/Zn in all samples was less than 200 which showed that phytate did not affect the bioavailability of zinc.
This study aimed to determine the nutrient contents in tempe produced by five cottage industries in Selangor, Malaysia.
Proximate contents were analysed by using standard methods of AOAC (1997) while carbohydrate content was calculated
by difference. Mineral contents, total dietary fiber (TDF), total phenolic content and total isoflavone content were
determined by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS), enzymatic-gravimetric (AOAC 985.29), Folin-Ciocalteu
colorimetric and High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) respectively. Macronutrients were reported in 100
g sample and the results showed the average nutrient contents were as follow: 63.07 ± 3.18% moisture, 19.63 ± 1.50%
protein, 0.65 ± 0.17% fat, 0.70 ± 0.06% ash and 15.95 ± 1.88% total carbohydrate. The average mineral content in 100
g samples (based on wet basis) were 29.45 ± 5.67 mg calcium, 13.28 ± 5.76 mg magnesium, 3.48 ± 1.09 mg sodium and
2.06 ± 0.33 mg ferum. The results showed that the average of TDF content was 8.05 ± 3.65%. Total phenolic content
was 259.87 ± 22.62 mg of GAE/g. The total isoflavone content in 100 g samples (wet basis) was 41.94 ± 10.42 mg/100
g. This study had shown that total phenolic content was significantly correlated (p < 0.01) with total isoflavone content
in all tempe samples. It can be concluded that there was no significant difference (p > 0.05) in nutrient contents among
tempe samples produced by five cottage industries located in Selangor, Malaysia. However, the mineral and isoflavone
contents in the present study were lower compared to previous studies.
Introduction: This two-phase longitudinal study sought to determine the association between isoflavones intake on cognitive function and comorbidities among older adults from the state of Johor, Malaysia.
Methods: Phase I involved baseline data collection to examine the association between isoflavones intake and cognitive function among 400 respondents aged 60-years and above, recruited through multistage random sampling. Phase 2 determined the association between isoflavones intake at the baseline and comorbidities at an 18-month follow-up. The baseline data collected included information on socio-demographics, health status, andunpometric measurements, and dietary intake using a dietary history questionnaire (DHQ). Each participant's cognitive function was evaluated using a mini mental state examination (MMSE), digit span, digit symbol, and geriatric depression scale (GDS).
Results: The daily intake of total isoflavones, daidzein, and genistein were 19.1±19.7,11.7±12.3 and 7.6+8.1 mg/day, respectively. There was no significant association between isoflavones intake, and specific cognitive function including global, memory, executive functions, and depression. However, there was a significant association (p 0.05).
Conclusion: This study found an association between isoflavones intake and memory function, but not with global cognitive, executive functions, depression, and comorbidities. There is a need to promote adequate isoflavones intake in view of its association with memory function.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the effect of different cooking
procedures on the total phenolic content and antioxidant capacity of organic and inorganic
beans based on the increasing demand of organic food products. The total phenolic content and
antioxidant capacities of eight types of beans matched to the organic and inorganic samples was
analyzed based on three different conditions namely raw (R), cooked without soaking (CWS)
and cooked after soaking (CAS). Changes in these variables before and after processing were
compared between organic and inorganic beans. CAS caused significant (p
Available studies to determine the total phenolic content and antioxidant capacities of cooking
pastes available in Malaysia were currently limited. This study aimed to evaluate the total
phenolic content (TPC) and antioxidant capacity of seven types of mix spices cooking paste
in raw and cooked condition (N=33). Samples were selected based on market availability.
TPC was determined by Folin-Ciocalteu method and the antioxidant capacities were evaluated
by DPPH free radical scavenging assay, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay and
ABTS free radical scavenging assay. Results were presented in dry weight (DW). TPC in the
paste samples ranged from 246.25 to 370.57 mg GAE/100 g whereas antioxidant capacities
ranged from 728.54 to 1267.66 μmol TE/100 g for DPPH assay, 1247.15 to 1886.89 μmol
TE/100 g for FRAP assay and 833.19 to 1589.40 μmol TE/100 g for ABTS assay. Chicken, fish
and vegetarian curries were top three samples with the highest TPC and antioxidant capacities
values. Cooking process had caused increment in TPC and antioxidant capacities of all paste
samples, with Rendang paste showed the greatest increase in TPC (21.48%) and antioxidant
capacities (24.26%-49.66%) after cooking. Linear relationships were observed between TPC
and DPPH antioxidant capacity (r=0.545), FRAP antioxidant capacity (r=0.840) and ABTS
antioxidant capacity (r=0.623). A positive relationship between TPC and antioxidant capacities
indicated that polyphenol is one of the sources of antioxidants in mix spices cooking paste.
Further investigations on the active compounds in the cooking pastes are needed to determine
the bioavailability and effect of these compounds in human
The aim of this study was to determine the specific content and type of sugars in selected commercial and traditional kuih in Klang Valley. The selection of the kuih was based on the validated Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) for sugar. The selected commercial kuih was doughnut coated with sugar (Big Apple) while the ten traditional kuih samples consisted of kuih bingka ubi, kuih kasui, kuih keria, kuih koci, kuih lapis, kuih lopes, kuih onde-onde, kuih sagu, kuih seri muka and kuih talam. The doughnut coated with sugar (Big Apple) was purchased from Big Apple Donuts and Coffee franchise at two different locations, while the traditional kuih were randomly bought from stalls, cafeterias and restaurants around Kuala Lumpur and Rawang. The types and amount of sugar were determined using High Performance High Chromatography (HPLC) with a refractive index (RI) detector. Results showed that doughnut coated with sugar (Big Apple) has the highest starch content (22.6±0.3 g/100g) and kuih keria contained the highest available carbohydrate (41.5±1.7 g/100g), comprising of 24.2±2.4 g/100g total sugar and 17.3±0.7 g/100g of starch. The least available carbohydrate content was found in kuih talam (20.0±0.5 g/100g), which was 50% lower than the one in kuih keria. Major individual sugars detected in all kuih samples were consisted of sucrose (60.0%), glucose (16.2%), fructose (14.0%), maltose (9.5%) and lactose (0.3%). Majority of the kuih samples (90.9%) in this study can be categorized as medium sugar while only kuih keria was categorized as high sugar. Based on the two main ingredients (sugar and flour) used in the preparation of kuih, results showed that all kuih samples can be categorized as medium sugarmedium starch. In conclusion, this study served as a guideline by locals in selecting kuih of
different sugar levels.
A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine bone health status and nutrient intakes among post-menopausal women residing in low cost houses in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur.
A study of Kuala Lumpur blood donors for HBsAG, anti-HBc and DNA polymeraes showed that 5.5% in the sample population was positive for HBsAG, 50.1% for anti-HBc and 10.1% for DNA polymerase activity. There was no significant difference of the HBsAG among the Malay, Chinese and Indian groups. However, a significant difference was observed for the anti-HBc and DNA polymerase activity between the Indian and the Malay/Chinese groups. Both analysis were significantly lower in the Indians but there was no significant difference between the Chinese and the Malays.