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Urgency of vegetables in nutrition and health

By Munawar Iqbal Bosalvee and Irfan Ullah

Among the requirement of life, diet is one of the most essential component other then water. Mineral, antioxidant compound, carbohydrate, protein, and vitamins are the basic demand of human body. Life can be defined distinctly by the concept of proper growth, repairing, and reproduction. Malnutrition and starvation warned us to improve the health and nutritional standards, which have focused on healthier production and potent alternative food resources.

As we know that cereals are generally low in various essential component of diet and incapable to fulfill the dietary requirement absolutely. So, the deficiency of cereals must be reinstated by alternative resources. Vegetables were found worthiest in this regard, including major components of diet e.g. vitamins, minerals, flavonoids, steroids, tannins, glycosides, saponins, phenols, carotenoids, isothiocyanates (sulfur-compounds), and several types of dietary fiber. Some of them take part in metabolism, while other acts as defender, regulators, flavor, and fragrances.

Vegetables e.g. Kaddu, Band Gobhi, Gajor, Phool Gobhi, Salad, Alu, Palak and Tamato etc contained a considerable amount of proximate component like moisture (79-94.5%), protein (1.2-2.1%), fate (0.2-1.0%) and carbohydrate (3.0-19.0%) on the basis of dry weight. A high amount of fiber performs effortlessly roughage of food in body, can avoid the constipation and able to decrease high concentration of cholesterol in body. All vegetables were found to be rich in minerals contents like Ca, P, Na, K, Cr, Fe, Si, S, Zn, Mn, Mg and Co etc in variable proportion (0.5-2400 mg/kg). Minerals are crucial because they bring about variegated and major functions like catabolism and anabolism to maintain proper physiology of the body.

An adult human body requires more than 100 mg minerals per day; because they perform various types of function e.g. Sodium and potassium regulate fluid balance within the body and transmits nerve impulses. Calcium control formation of polyps, prevents leg cramp, tooth decay and maintains bone density, strength and anxiety. It also lowers blood pressure and depression. Deficiency of magnesium frustrates bones, vitamins, nerves impulses, blood clotting problem and can disturb insulin secretion. Iron has a key role in the formation of hemoglobin along with metabolic and enzymatic functions. Shortage of iron interrupts the immune system. Manganese is necessary for the production of energy its scarcity is the base of abnormal skeleton development and loss of hearing and blindness in infants. Zinc organizes proper functioning of enzymes in body, its insufficiency desist growth, sexual maturity and delays wounds healings.

A significant amount of vitamins is present in vegetables including vitamin B1 (0.03-0.13%), vitamin B2 (0.05-0.1%), vitamin B5 (0.3-1.2%) and vitamin C (12-76%) per hundred gram of dry weight and verity of antioxidants. These compounds other then anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-aging, anti-mutagenic & antibacterial agent, also defend our body against various disasters by inhibiting the initiation or propagation of oxidative chain reactions by scavenging free radicals and active as blood purifiers. Furthermore, they boost up our immune system in minute concentration.
On the other hand, vegetables are poor sources of fat that make them high quality food for obese people. Individually some vegetables contained high amount of minerals while other contained maximum amount of proteins and antioxidant compounds. So vegetables intake in different combination along with other ingredients is indispensable for the maintenance of healthy life and normal body functioning.

Other then nutritional supplement and prevention of physical disorders vegetables are active as natural therapies and harmless alternative medicines for controlling various diseases like constipation, rheumatic ailments, cholera, stomach, urinary & digestive disorders, heart disease/stroke, cancers, diabetes, obesity, diverticulosis, hypertension, birth defects, asthma, bronchitis, perplexity, cataracts, skin blemishes and natural beauty tonics. It is estimated that 31% of ischemic heart disease, 19% gastrointestinal cancer, and 11% of stroke worldwide are due to low intake of vegetables and fruit. A 5-10 percent usage of vegetable per day brings to an end these diseases. Pakistani soil as compared to various other developed countries has good texture, favorable temperature; tolerable pH and enrich in minerals, while disease proportion is high due to lack of knowledge and proper management. Each and every part of vegetable can deposited a very high amount of minerals and other relevant components in their body (seed, leaves, twig, roots, flower and stem etc), especially those of leafy vegetables grown in mineral contaminated soils, accumulate higher amount of minerals than those grown in uncontaminated soils because of the fact that they absorb these minerals with the help of their leaves.

In this regard we should have focused not only on quality and quantity of ingredient there but also new verities of vegetables that can provide high yield per year per hectare, that have capability to accomplish nutritional criteria and can thrive well in natural environment. Despite the benefits that vegetables can bring to enhance nutritional and health standards, there is a concern among the food technologist, growers and consumer about cultivation, harvesting, cooking, processing and storage.