For the first Time, the amount of antioxidants was measured by commercially available edible insects. Antioxidants can make in the metabolism resulting free radicals and prevent many diseases, so foods that contain a lot of it, as "Superfood" to be referred to. In grasshoppers, silkworms and crickets any quantity of these substances found.
"At least two billion people – a quarter of the world’s population – regularly eat insects. The Rest of us a little more encouragement brauchen" is;, Prof. Mauro Serafini, author of the current study, which was published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition says.
This encouragement could be nutrients and the high content of antioxidants and other that have been detected in several types: water-soluble extracts of grasshoppers, silkworms and crickets are included in the comparison to fresh orange and more antioxidants juice five times. In fat from giant crickets or silkworms twice as many antioxidants as in olive oil stuck. Converted to the same water content (88 percent) would grasshoppers and silkworms have 75 percent of the antioxidant activity of orange juice.
"Edible insects are an excellent source of protein, polyunsaturated fatty acids, minerals, vitamins and fiber. So far, no one has them in respect of their antioxidant activity with classical functional foods, such as olive oil or orange juice verglichen", so Serafini.
The extent to which these animal antioxidants develop in humans, a similar effect as the well-known from plants, but must still be examined in more detail.