Development and Analysis of Ragi Based Antioxidant Rich Premix and Formulation of Recipe

Antioxidants are the components that inhibit or delay the oxidation process by blocking the initiation or propagation of oxidizing chain reactions. Various green leafy vegetables, fruits, spices and condiments contain fairly good amount of antioxidants, which when consumed helps in reducing inflammation and ultimately reduces the risk of non communicable diseases. In the present investigation three Ragi based premixes were prepared. One served as control (Mix C) and other two as antioxidant rich Mix A (enriched with curry leaves) and Mix B (enriched with both curry leaves and amla) were developed. The vitamin C content of mix C was found to be 57.6mg/100gm, mix A has 83.66 mg/100gm vitamin and 86.33 mg/100gm respectively. The Carotene content of both the mix A and B was found to be 257.33g/100 gm 277.66g/100 gm respectively when compared to the standard premix which only has 182.66g/100 gm of carotene content. The Vitamin E content of mix B was much higher than mix A, mix B contain 64.5 mg /100 gm of vitamin E followed by mix A which contain 63.66 mg/100 gm and mix C which only contain 52.46 mg/100 gm. The total polyphenol content ranged between 29.3 to 42.3mg /100 gm. All the three samples showed moderate to little free radical scavenging activity. Mix C showed 67.4g/ml, mix A showed 71.86g/ml and mix B showed 76.32g/ml respectively. Comparative analysis indicate that both mix A and B have more antioxidant activity as compared to mix C. The results of the sensory evaluation of the mathari prepared by all the three mixes revealed that mean overall acceptability of the mathari prepared with the mix A scored highest and was liked very much when compared with mix C and mix B. Thus it can be concludes that antioxidant plays an important role in the protecting the human body against damage by reactive oxygen species (ROS). Natural antioxidants were known to exhibit a wide range of biological effects including antibacterial, antiviral, anti- inflammatory properties. Therefore, it is necessary to enrich our diet with antioxidant to fight against various chronic diseases. The developed mixes has good total antioxidant activity. Therefore utilization of prepared mixes help in the overall well being of the society.