| dc.description.abstract | Waterleaf (Talinum triangulare (Jacq.) Willd) is one of tropical plant and has long been used as herbs and vegetable in daily menu. Its leaves are fleshy and sticky, presumably due to the high pectin content. Pectin is soluble dietary fiber component that performs ability to reduce cholesterol and LDL level in blood. The aim of this research was to study the effect of organic and inorganic fertilization as well as the cultivating season to the level of TDF, IDF, SDF and pectic substance in waterleaf. The research was conducted in five steps, i.e. cultivation, sample preparation, chemical analysis, data analysis, and meta analysis. The samples were ten waterleaf cultivated in dry season with organic and inorganic fertilizations, each in five different concentration of fertilizers. The TDF, IDF, SDF, and pectic substance in waterleaf cultivated with organic fertilizer were 40.52 2.72; 27.12 1.54; 13.40 1.68; and 6.58 0.74 g/100 dry basis respectively, while in waterleaf with inorganic fertilizer were 42.57 1.84; 27.12 0.75; 15.41 1.85; and 6.01 0.35 g/100 g dry basis respectively. All parameters, except IDF, were significantly different (p < 0.05). The meta analysis showed that the dry season waterleaf contain less TDF and IDF, and more SDF and pectic substance than the wet season waterleaf do (p < 0.01). The SDF and pectic substance content of the dry season waterleaf are relatively higher compared to other vegetables. It indicates that waterleaf is potential to be developed as functional food for lowering cholesterol and LDL level in blood. | en |
