Proximate Composition, Phytochemical Analysis and Invitro Antioxidant Potentials of Aqueous Extract of Coconut Sugar

Coconut sugar is produced by heating freshly collected coconut sap. The brown color of sugar is derived from non-enzymatic browning reaction. It is strongly influenced by pH and temperature. In this study, the proximate composition of coconut sugar, phytochemical screening and antioxidant activity of coconut sugar were examined. The proximate composition of coconut sugar was high in sucrose content (49.41) than the glucose (15.60) and fructose content (14.15%). The phytochemicals present mainly are alkaloids, phenols, steroids and phytosterols. Coconut sugar is rich in vitamin C (110mg), phosphorous (54.7mg), magnesium (23.13mg), calcium (5.6mg), iron (5mg) and protein (0.42g). It has an excellent antioxidant activity with DPPH radical scavenging activity than superoxide and hydrogen peroxide radical scavenging activity. The organoleptic evaluation of coconut sugar was compared with cane sugar among beverages such as black tea, black coffee, milk tea, milk coffee and milk to show their acceptance. Among all the beverages the overall acceptability of appearance, taste, flavor and color was superior to that of cane sugar. It can be concluded that in addition to their good mineral and phenolic content, coconut sugar could be useful as an antimicrobial substance to prevent various diseases. Future investigation is needed for the assessment of medicinal properties of coconut sugar.