Algerian Honey a Good Source of Antioxidants

Physicochemical and Antioxidant Properties of Algerian HoneyMolecules, 2012 Sep 20;17(9):11199-215The aim of the present study was to characterize thephysical, biochemical and antioxidant properties of Algerian honey samples (n =4). Physical parameters, such as pH, moisture content,electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), color intensity,total sugar and sucrose content were measured. Several biochemical andantioxidant tests were performed to determine the antioxidant properties of thehoney samples. The mean pH was 3.84 ± 0.01, and moisture the content was 13.21± 0.16%. The mean EC was 0.636 ± 0.001, and the mean TDS was 316.92 ± 0.92. Themean color was 120.58 ± 0.64 mm Pfund, and the mean 5-hydroxymethylfurfural(HMF) content was 21.49 mg/kg. The mean total sugar and reducing sugar contentswere 67.03 ± 0.68 g/mL and 64.72 ± 0.52 g/g, respectively. The mean sucrosecontent was 2.29 ± 0.65%. High mean values of phenolic (459.83 ± 1.92 mg gallicacid/kg), flavonoid (54.23 ± 0.62 mg catechin/kg), ascorbic acid (159.70 ± 0.78mg/kg), AEAC (278.15 ± 4.34 mg/kg), protein (3381.83 ± 6.19 mg/kg) and proline(2131.47 ± 0.90) contents, as well as DPPH (39.57% ± 4.18) and FRAP activities[337.77 ± 1.01 µM Fe (II)/100 g], were also detected, indicating that Algerianhoney has a high antioxidant potential. Strong positive correlations were found between flavonoid,proline and ascorbic acid contents and color intensity with DPPH and FRAPvalues. Thus, the present study revealed that Algerian honey is a good sourceof antioxidants.