Issue 5, 2021

The role of emerging micro-scale vegetables in human diet and health benefits—an updated review based on microgreens

Abstract

Increasing public concern about health has prompted humans to find new sources of food. Microgreens are young and immature plants that have been recently introduced as a new category of vegetables, adapting their production at the micro-scale. In this paper, the chemical compositions including micro-nutrients and some typical phytochemicals of microgreens are summarized. Their edible safety and potential health benefits are also reviewed. Microgreens play an increasingly vital role in health-promoting diets. They are considered good sources of nutritional and bioactive compounds, and show potential in the prevention of malnutrition and chronic diseases. Some strategies in the pre- or post-harvest stages of microgreens can be further applied to obtain better nutritional, functional, and sensorial quality with freshness and extended shelf life. This review provides valuable nutrient data and health information for microgreens, laying a theoretical foundation for people to consume microgreens more wisely, and providing great value for the development of functional products with microgreens.

Graphical abstract: The role of emerging micro-scale vegetables in human diet and health benefits—an updated review based on microgreens

Article information

Article type
Review Article
Submitted
16 Dec 2020
Accepted
01 Feb 2021
First published
03 Feb 2021

Food Funct., 2021,12, 1914-1932

The role of emerging micro-scale vegetables in human diet and health benefits—an updated review based on microgreens

J. Teng, P. Liao and M. Wang, Food Funct., 2021, 12, 1914 DOI: 10.1039/D0FO03299A

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