Safflower
Petals and Their Chemical Composition
Abstract
Safflower
petals have immense medicinal and therapeutic properties as revealed by Chinese
researchers. Petals of safflower
from India were analyzed for carthamin (red pigment) (0.83%), oil (5.0%),
protein (1.9%), ash (10.4%), fiber (12.2%), and fatty acid composition. The
petal oil was shown, for the first time, to contain some short chain fatty acids
(10:0, 12:0 and 14:0), gamma linolenic acid (GLA) along with fatty acids such as
palmitic, stearic, oleic and alpha linolenic acids. Similarly the petals were rich in Ca (530 mg), Mg (287 mg),
and Fe (7.3 mg/100 g) along with lower levels of Cu, Zn, and Mn. The organic and
inorganic constituents together may provide the nutritional and medicinal values
to the petals.
Key words: safflower petals, carthamin, fatty acids, minerals, protein, oil, fiber, ash moisture, Carthamus tinctorius L.