Authors: Shakpo, IO, Ajala AO, Oludunsin AO, Ademulegun TI, Opawale BO, Olatinpo MK.
Consuming diets with low glycemic index may reduce postprandial glycemia and triglyceridemia. The flour which is high in fibre and low in fat (produced from maize, cowpea and Moringa seeds) is a good component for diabetes patient. The objective of the study was to increase the nutrient content of the cereal and improve the nutritional intake of the consumers. Flour blends were produced from maize, cowpea and moringa seed flours in the following ratios of maize: cowpea: moringa seed; 100:0:0; 80:10:10, 75:15:10, 75:10:15, 75:20:05 respectively. Determination of the Proximate and mineral composition were carried out on the flour blends using standard methods. The result for the proximate composition shows that the moisture, ash, fat and fibre contents ranged from 8.75% to 11.23%, 2.00% to 3.10%, 8.15 to 15.00 and 2.00 to 3.94% respectively, while protein and carbohydrate contents ranged from 10.05% to 15.10% and 57.40 to 66.57% respectively. The result of the mineral composition of the flour blends showed that Calcium content of the sample ranged from 6.00 to 29.30 mg/100 g, magnesium 53.10 to 81.40 mg/100 g, potassium 192.35 to 451.15 mg/100 g, sodium 17.90 to 366.25 mg/100 g, manganese 1.15 to 1.60 mg/100 g, iron and zinc content ranged from 4.20 to 7.70 and 2.40 to 3.10 mg/100 g respectively. Sample C (75:15:10) was higher in calcium, magnesium and potassium than the rest blends. The microbiological status of the flour blends from maize/cowpea/moringa seeds showed that the Total Viable Count (TVC) and Yeast and Mould count (YMC) were significantly higher in sample A, C, D, E than in sample B, while Coliform was not detected in any of the samples, an indication that there was no faecal contamination. The microbial count ranged from 29.00 x 103 to 51.00 x 103 and 21.50 x 103 to 46.6 x 103 for TVC and YMC respectively with the lowest value recorded for sample B in both cases. Little information exist for the microbiological status of flour, but the presence of yeast and mould in the flour samples could be attributed to the surrounding air and packaging materials. Conclusively, enrichment of maize flour with cowpea and moringa seeds flours will improve the protein, magnesium, potassium, iron and zinc and make a suitable meal which is high in fibre for people including diabetes patients.
View/Download pdf