Fruits and vegetables: a source of minerals

Fruits and vegetables are consumed as sources of water, carbohydrates and essential nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and fibers.

Minerals all have several roles in human biochemistry and physiology and all the minerals mentioned above are essential in the diet of humans. Many are co-factors for different enzymes and human are dependent on them for energy efficiency, fertility, mental stability and immunity.

Fresh fruits and vegetables contribute about 26% of the magnesium and 19% of the iron to the U.S diet

The following fruits are important contributors to the supply of indicated minerals in the U.S diet;
Potassium: banana, peach, orange, apple, dried fruits such as apricot and prune
Phosphorus: banana, orange, peach, fig, raisin
Calcium: tangerine, grapefruit, orange, citrus, cabbages
Iron: strawberry, banana, apple, orange
Copper: leafy vegetables
Sulfur: cabbage, onions, garlic, leeks, turnips, radishes

Fruits and vegetables furnish more than one-fifth the intake of copper and manganese and almost three-fifths of the total boron intake. Fruits and vegetables can furnish about one-fifth of the total dietary intake of chromium and arsenic and one-third of the supply of nickel.
Fruits and vegetables: a source of minerals

Antioxidants in fruit

Fruits, nuts, and vegetables in the daily diet have been strongly associated with reduced risk for some forms of cancer, heart disease, stroke and other chronic disease. This is attributed, in part, to their content of antioxidant phytochemicals.

It has been estimated that one-third of all cancer deaths in the United States could be prevented through appropriate dietary modification, especially by enriching diets with fruits and vegetables, because various dietary antioxidants have shown considerable promise as cancer-preventing agents.

Antioxidant vitamins including vitamin A, carotenoids, vitamin C and vitamin E, potentiate the antioxidant status and reduce lipid oxidation.

Besides the vitamin antioxidants, fruits and vegetables also contain non-nutrient antioxidant such as the flavonoids, polyphenols, and terpenes.

People who eat the highest amount of fruits and vegetables have a 20% lower risk for coronary heart disease, and the lowest risk were seen in people who ate more fruits rich in polyphenolic compounds and vitamins.

Red, blue, and purple fruits (such as apple, blackberry, blueberry, blood orange, cranberry, grape, nectarine, peach, plum, prune, pomegranate, raspberry, and strawberry) are good sources of flavonoids and other phenolic compounds that are positively correlated with antioxidant capacity of the fruit.

Orange-flesh fruits (such as apricot, cantaloupe, mango, nectarine, orange, papaya, peach, persimmon and pineapple) and some red flesh fruits (such as tomato, watermelon and pink grapefruit) are good sources of carotenoids.

Lycopene, an antioxidant available in tomatoes, has a low availability in tomato juice, but cooking tomatoes in an oil-based medium substantially enhances intestinal absorption.
Antioxidants in fruit

Mineral content in fruits

All vegetables and fruits contain important minerals, such as potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron and zinc.

Fresh fruits and vegetables contribute about 26% of the magnesium and 19% of the iron to the U.S diet.

Fruit are generally not as rich in minerals as vegetables are. The mineral content is generally higher in organically grown fruits that have been raised in enriched soil without pesticides.

Minerals are basic components in secondary metabolic pathways that produce valuable phytochemical for normal human health.

Minerals are important for the various metabolic activities of the living tissue and even more so far the fruit, which exhibits tremendous activity during the ripening process.

The following fruits are important contributors to the supply of indicated minerals in the U.S diet:
Potassium: banana, peach, orange, apple, dried fruits such as apricot and prune
Phosphorus: banana, orange, peach, fig, raisin, grape, cherry
Calcium: tangerine, grapefruit, orange
Iron: strawberry, banana, apple, orange

Potassium is the most abundant individual mineral element in fruits. It normal varies between 60 and 600 mg per 100 g of fresh tissue. In fruits, potassium occurs mainly in combination with various organic acids. 

Calcium is not only associated with preventing osteoporosis, but it also appears it have protective effects in some types of cancer, most recently colon cancer.
Mineral content in fruits