Vitamin C content of different types of lettuce varieties

Abstract

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) is a highly valued vegetable in human nutrition not only for its richness in minerals and vitamins but also for the fact that nowadays it is produced all year round, and consumed fresh so that all the ingredients stay intact. As part of the study of antioxidant features of lettuce, vitamin C (L-ascorbic acid) was determined in several types of lettuce. The research was conducted on lettuce samples of the types butterhead–Plenti, oakleaf–Murai and Kibou, batavia– Temptation, and leaf lettuce–Levistro. Lettuce samples for determination of the vitamin C content were collected at technological maturity. Using the appropriate mixture of acids, total vitamin C was extracted from the samples, and the content of L-ascorbic acid was determined using the Tillman’s method. The highest vitamin C content was determined in lettuce Levistro 9.60mg/100g of fresh lettuce, whereas Murai contained the lowest amount of vitamin C, 3.50 mg/100 g.