Can Be An Alternative, Recent Research Finds Flour From Banana Peel High In Antioxidant Content

Illustration of healthy flour alternatives from banana peels with good benefits and ingredients (Freepik)

YOGYAKARTA – Bananas are high in potassium which helps to get a good night's sleep and is a low-calorie healthy dinner alternative. Other findings also prove that banana peels have many benefits. First, it can be used for organic fertilizers. Second, a recent study found that replacing wheat flour in cakes with flour made from banana peels can increase antioxidant levels.

Wheat flour is the main ingredient in making cakes. Although there are also many cakes made from other types of flour, wheat flour is chosen because it produces a soft texture and expands more easily. By adding banana peel flour as much as 7.5 percent of the required dough, it will not adversely affect sensory properties such as texture and taste in the cake. Launching Medical News Today, Tuesday, August 16, the results of this study indicate that banana peel flour can be a viable alternative to improve the nutritional properties of foods.

The study, published in the journal ACS Food Science & Technology, showed that replacing a small portion of flour in cakes with banana peel flour improved the nutritional profile of cakes without affecting taste and texture.

"Consumption of banana peels is not only beneficial for farmers (providing waste management solutions), and the agricultural industry (generating income by converting waste materials into value-added goods), but also contains enormous nutritional value that can provide health benefits when consumed," he said. Dr. Wolyna Pindi, senior lecturer at Universiti Malaysia Sabah.

Illustration of healthy flour alternatives from banana peels with good benefits and ingredients (Unsplash/Julia Kuzenkov)

Bananas are the fourth most consumed food crop after rice, wheat and corn. Banana peels account for almost 35 percent of the total weight of the fruit. Most are just wasted in the trash or for compost. Behind its suboptimal utilization, banana peels contain high amounts of organic compounds. Decomposition in landfills is a significant source of the greenhouse gas methane. One effort to minimize banana peel waste, leads to the production of biofuels, fertilizers, wastewater treatment, and other industrial applications.

In addition, the high fiber and anti-oxidants make banana peels worthy of inclusion in a healthy diet. Banana peels, in particular, contain phenolic compounds that are anti-oxidant and anti-microbial. Phenolic compounds are also useful as anti-inflammatory and have the potential to manage diabetes and high blood pressure. Plus, banana peels are also rich in protein, potassium, magnesium, vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and amino acids.

A number of cake manufacturers, have used banana peel flour as an ingredient. Researchers from Aligarh University investigated whether adding wheat flour with banana peels could increase the nutritional properties of cakes. The results, as stated above, have the potential to increase the anti-oxidant content by adding 7.5-15 percent of banana peel flour in the dough, which is mostly made from wheat flour.

Banana peel flour, prepared from skin that has been washed and not damaged. After the skin is pale and dry, then it is ground into flour. The results of the flour can be added in the composition of the cookie ingredients. Researchers found cookies contain high levels of fat and fat oxidation can reduce shelf life. By adding 15 percent of banana peel flour, the researchers found that polyphenol compounds and anti-oxidant properties helped the shelf life of up to 3 months.

Significantly, cookies with banana peel flour content showed greater inhibition of fat oxidation. The co-author of this study, Faizan Ahmad, explained that it is not recommended to consume banana peels in raw form because they may be exposed to pollutants or pesticides. In the manufacture of flour, the banana peel is cleaned until it is sterile first.

But it is also not recommended to be machine dried at high temperatures because it has the potential to reduce the beneficial compounds in banana peels. Recommendations from Doctor Pindi, modifications in processing banana peels are still needed to reduce the presence of nutrients that limit food absorption in banana peels.