Abstract

PROXIMATE ANALYSIS OF AQUEOUS EXTRACT OF CURCUMA LONGA (TURMERIC)

*Uzomba N. I., Amaralam E. C. and Obinna Joel.

Abstract

This study was done on the proximate composition of aqueous extract of Curcuma longa (Turmeric). The rhizomes were collected, washed in a tap water to remove adhering debris. Later, it was sliced into chips and dried for 7 days. The dried chips were grounded into fine powder using a blender. 20g of the grounded sample was weighed and extracted in 100ml of distilled water. The extract produced was subjected to proximate analysis. The proximate analysis was carried out as specified by (Onwuka, 2005). The percentage proximate composition results obtained from Curcuma longa (Turmeric) extract reveals each parameter to be; moisture content 4.0±0.3, ash content 4.6±0.7, crude fiber content 15.21±3.2, fat/ether extract 16.5±1.2, crude protein 0.1±0.02 and carbohydrate 56.3±4.3 at the end of the research work. This reveals that the plant extract is a good source of carbohydrates when compared with the recommended dietary allowance of 130g (Pamela et al., 2005).

Keywords: Proximate analysis, aqueous extract, Curcuma longa (Turmeric).