Tag: iron

Chemical Assessment of Iron and Calcium Enhancement in Petha Sweet Using Honey as a Natural Sweetener

Volume 14, Issue 56, 2025 (October – December)

Research Article
Chemical Assessment of Iron and Calcium Enhancement in Petha Sweet Using Honey as a Natural Sweetener
Suhani Agarwal, Parimita and Sakshi Gupta
Keywords: Petha sweet; Honey; Mineral fortification; Iron; Calcium; Nutritional enhancement; Functional confection.
DOI:10.37273/chesci.cs012056122

Full Text – PDF

Abstract
The study investigated the influence of honey incorporation on the mineral composition, specifically iron (Fe) and calcium (Ca), of Petha sweet prepared from Benincasa hispida (ash gourd). Honey, a natural sweetener rich in essential nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, possesses notable antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties. It supports digestion, enhances immunity, and serves as a healthier alternative to refined sugar. In the present study, honey was incorporated as a partial substitute for refined sugar to improve the nutritional and functional quality of traditional Petha sweet. The control sample was prepared by using only ash gourd and refined sugar with ratio 40:60 (T0). Honey enrich Petha sweet was prepared with 5 different combinations of refined sugar and honey i.e. 50:10 (T1), 40:20 (T2), 30:30 (T3), 20:40 (T4), 10:50 (T5). The incorporation of honey resulted in a significant (p < 0.05) increase in both calcium and iron content compared to the control. Calcium content exhibited a progressive increase from 12.60 mg/100 g in the control (T₀) to 14.95 mg/100 g in the highest honey-incorporated sample (T₅), indicating a positive correlation between honey substitution level and calcium enrichment. Similarly, iron content increased gradually from 4.78 mg/100 g in the control (T₀) to 4.93 mg/100 g in the T₅ formulation, demonstrating a consistent enhancement in iron concentration with higher honey incorporation levels.
The enhancement in mineral content is attributed to the inherent mineral richness of honey and its synergistic interaction with the product matrix, which may improve mineral retention and bioavailability during processing. Thus, the partial replacement of refined sugar with honey, optimally at a 30:30 ratio, not only enriches the mineral profile of Petha sweet but also transforms it into a more nutritionally superior and functionally enhanced traditional confection.

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Micronutrient Dynamics of Zinc and Iron in Soil and Foliar Applications for Wheat Biofortification

Volume 14, Issue 56, 2025 (October – December)

Research Article
Micronutrient Dynamics of Zinc and Iron in Soil and Foliar Applications for Wheat Biofortification
Abhijeet, S.R. Bhunia, Mahaveer Parsad Ola, Arjun Lal Choudhary, Khubi Poonia , Sonali Pal and Ankit Kumar
Keywords: Agronomic biofortification, zinc, iron, wheat, yield, grain quality, foliar spray, soil application
DOI:10.37273/chesci.cs312056085

Full Text – PDF

Abstract

Foliar or soil spray-on provision of micronutrients, or agronomic biofortification, is a viable means of increasing wheat grain concentrations of iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) and potentially having effects on grain quality and the research question of the current paper was as follows: What were the effects of various combinations of soil application, zinc and iron at recommended dose of fertilizer, and foliar sprays of oxide s of zinc and iron (ZnSO4) and iron (FeSO4) on a wheat development, their yield and contents of iron and zinc in a grain. Combinations of RDF (T1), RDF (T2), RDF + water spray (T3), RDF + ZnSO4 soil application (T4), RDF + ZnSO4 foliar spray at tillering (T5), combined soil + foliar Zn (T6), RDF + FeSO4 soil application (T7), RDF + FeSO4 foliar spray (T8), combined soil + foliar Fe (T9) and RDF + combined soil Zn + Fe (T10) and RDF + foliar Zn + Fe (T11) yield. Three replications and randomized block design were used by the design of the experiment. Noticeable observations were traits such as plant height, tiller density, biomass, grain yield, harvest index, grain protein contents and contents of Iron and Zinc. In statistical testing, ANOVA and the respective mean separation-tests were adopted.

RDF can only hope to improve the pre-existing yield, but (T6, T9, T10, T11) the combination of soil + foliar integrated Zn/Fe treatments with RDF has the potential to bring about the greatest enhancement in grain Fe and Zn concentration and possibly lead to an enhancement in the yield parameters. The research was giving recommendations on cost effective agronomic measures of improving wheat nutritive value.

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