Amaranthus: A nutritious solution to malnutrition for underprivileged populations in Pakistan

Abstract

Malnutrition in Pakistan is cause of concern which is affecting everyone regardless of age and gender. The situation for women and children is even more alarming and prevalence of malnutrition in Pakistan exceeds against other developing countries. The poor and underprivileged populations in Sindh, Balochistan, KPK and South Punjab are severely affected by undernutrition of macro and micronutrients. Despite continuous efforts, malnutrition in certain areas of Pakistan is on surge due to many factors. Poverty, lack of sufficient nutritious food coupled with lack of food diversity are main factors of undernutrition in Pakistan. Amaranth is a climate resilient; drought tolerant plant and it can be produced with minimal number of resources even in poor soils. The adaptability and nutritional value of 25 exotic vegetable amaranth genotypes were investigated using standard analytical approaches in order to evaluate the several possibilities of the plant leaves in underprivileged population of Pakistan. The study discovered that exotic amaranth genotypes produce abundant green matter with optimum moisture contents and number of leaves per plant with good height. The investigation for nutrients disclosed the maximum ash content, crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber and carbohydrate from the leaves as (4.32 g 100g⁻¹ FW), (6.76 g 100g⁻¹ FW), (0.66 g 100g⁻¹ FW), (4.29 g 100g⁻¹ FW) and (18.19 g 100g⁻¹ FW) respectively in different genotypes. The maximum energy yielded in calories was 407.41 (kJ 100g⁻¹ FW). Elemental breakdown was performed in (mg g⁻¹ DW) and it indicated that the leaves contained maximum potassium (15.52 mg g⁻¹ DW), calcium (11.11 mg g⁻¹ DW), Magnesium (9.67 mg g⁻¹ DW), Iron (0.24 mg g⁻¹ DW), Zinc (0.18 mg g⁻¹ DW) and phosphorus (5.85 mg g⁻¹ DW) in different genotypes under investigation. Comparing the nutrients in exotic vegetable amaranth genotypes with recommended dietary allowance (RDA) values, the outcomes expose that the leaves of amaranth contain substantial amount of important nutrients that are crucial in combating malnutrition in underprivileged populations in Pakistan.