NUTRITIVE, MINERAL, PHYTOCHEMICAL AND ANTI-NUTRIENT COMPOSITION OF AN EDIBLE FERN, Diplazium sammatii (KUHN) C. CHR. GROWN IN EKITI STATE, NIGERIA

This study determined the nutritional and anti-nutritional composition of leaves of Diplazium sammatii using standard methods. Fresh and matured leaves of the fern were plucked from healthy plants, air dried to constant weight and pulverised into powder using an electric blender. This was used for the analyses. Results of the proximate analysis showed that it contained 15.31% protein, 14.60% moisture, 13.33% ash, 9.76% crude fibre, 44.05% carbohydrate, 2.93% fat and energy value of 263.81 kcal/100 g. The leaves were also observed to contain 22.30 mg/100 g of Vitamin C. The mineral elements present included sodium (68.10 mg/100 g), potassium (2073.80 mg/100 g), manganese (4.19 mg/100 g), magnesium (105.30 mg/100 g), phosphorus (154.45 mg/100 g), iron (45.30 mg/100 g), calcium (1360.00 mg/100 g), zinc (8.30 mg/100 g) and copper (0.51 mg/100 g). Phytochemical screening revealed that alkaloids, tannins, phenols, saponins, flavonoids, steroids, cardiac glycosides and cyanogenic glycosides were present while terpenoids, anthraquinones and phlobatanins were not detected. The anti-nutritional compounds found included oxalate (0.53 mg/100 g), phytate (0.41 mg/100 g) and hydrogen cyanide (0.08 mg/100 g). The results of proximate analysis suggest that the leaves of Diplazium sammatii could be a good source of nutrients especially for human diet when supplemented. Relatively high flavonoid content of the leaf extracts suggest potential anti-oxidant property of the vegetable while extremely low levels of the anti-nutrients indicate that the consumption of this plant as vegetables may not pose any health problems to the consumers.