Nutrients and natural toxic substances in commonly consumed Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.) tuber

This study determined nutrients, chemical contaminants, (insecticide residues and heavy metals), and natural toxic substances (nitrate, nitrite, cyanide, oxalate, phytate, and trypsin inhibitor) in tubers of Jerusalem artichokes—Kaentawan in the Thai language—grown in four major provinces in Thailand. They were purchased, prepared, homogenized, and freeze-dried for further analysis using standard methods. All Kaentawan samples contained considerable amounts of fructans and dietary fiber (15.4±0.2 g and 3.2±0.8 g/100 g fresh weight [FW], respectively), as well as potassium and iron (339±61 and 0.32±0.05 mg/100 g FW, respectively). All samples had very low amounts of insecticide residues (37 compounds), cyanide, and trypsin inhibitor, as well as Pb, Cd, nitrate, and nitrite (0.82±0.09, 0.10±0.02, 1.9–17.5, and 0.01–0.24 mg kg⁻¹ FW, respectively), in addition to oxalate and phytate (14±9 and 0.17±0.02 mg/100 g FW, respectively). This study's data can be used for food composition databases and for safety consumption.