A systematic review of zinc, iron and vitamin B12 content of edible insects and comparison with dietary reference values.

Abstract

Entomophagy (eating edible insects) could potentially address human deficiencies of iron, zinc and vitamin B₁₂. This article aims to summarise available evidence about the iron, zinc and vitamin B₁₂ content of raw and processed edible insects and compare these with the nutritional needs of different human life stages. A systematic literature search using specific keywords (edible insects, iron content, zinc content, vitamin B₁₂ content and nutritional composition) in Web of Science and Scopus databases was performed. Forty-six studies were reviewed. To ensure standardised comparisons, articles with nutrient-enriched edible insects were excluded. The quality of records was assessed using standardised protocols. Results indicate that edible insects are generally either 'sources of' or 'rich in' iron, zinc and vitamin B₁₂ required for optimal nutrition and health of different human life stages. Moreover, iron, zinc and vitamin B₁₂ contents of edible insect species were generally either comparable to or higher than that of (lean) beef, (lean) pork, poultry and kidney beans. Most insect species were oven processed with little/no species-specific data for other processing methods. Variations in micronutrient content existed between processing methods and among oven-processed edible insects. Data inaccuracies, poor data quality control and lack of insect-specific official analytical methods contributed to fairly high variations and made comparisons difficult. Based on available data, edible insects can potentially address human deficiencies of iron, zinc and vitamin B₁₂ despite the observed variations, data gaps and lack of edible insect matrix-specific official methods, in addition to limited human bioavailability and efficacy studies.