Antioxidant and polyphenol content of different milk and dairy products

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to determine the antioxidant capacity and total polyphenol content of raw milk, dairy products (ricotta and cottage cheese), and by-products (sweet and acid whey) from different animal breeds (cow, goat). Overall, the total polyphenol content of raw milk ranged from 420.34 to 490.72 mg GAE/100mL, while the total antioxidant content changed between 8.95 and 28.72 mg AAE/100mL. These values in the case of cottage cheeses were 32.29-124.29 mg GAE/100mL for polyphenols and 14.12-16.38 mg AAE/100g for antioxidants. Significant differences were observed between the total polyphenol content and antioxidant properties of sweet- (10.85-197.55 mg AAE/100g antioxidant; 32.29-124.29 mg GAE/100g polyphenol) and acid whey (13.28-158.69 mg AAE/100g antioxidant; 43.50-98.03 mg GAE/100g polyphenol). In addition, slight differences in total polyphenol content (10.55-19.01 mg GAE/100g) and antioxidant capacity (10.84-15.93 mg AAE/100g) were observed for ricotta cheeses made from milk of different animal breeds. The results show that milk and dairy products are excellent sources of antioxidants and polyphenols.