Revista Digital Universitaria ISSN: 1607 - 6079 | Publicación mensual | 1 de mayo de 2015 vol.16, No.5
ABSTRACT
Within the frame of the complex process of human nutrition, the key step is the conformation of the diet, one of which fundamental characteristics is diversity. Mexico is rich in biological resources that its different human groups have used as food through history. Some of these resources have been labeled as underutilized and undervalued species since its role in the present diet is marginal. Quelites (edible leaves used since prehispanic times in Mexico), outstand among these species since some of them are rich in nutrients and in “bioactive” substances with favorable effects on the organism The study and divulgation of the characteristics of these species may contribute to wide the diversity of the Mexican diet, not only from the biological perspective but also from the sensorial one.
Keywords: Quelites, human diet, underutilized and undervalued biological species, “bioactive” substances, food patrimony
Traditional Cuisine and Health
Héctor Bourges Rodríguez, Luis Alberto Vargas GuadarramaKeywords: Quelites, human diet, underutilized and undervalued biological species, “bioactive” substances, food patrimony