Gathering practices of Karen women: questionable contribution to beta-carotene intake

Gathering edible wild plants is widely recognized throughout rural southeast Asia for contributions to micronutrient intakes. Elderly Karen women in two northern Thailand communities (n = 32) were surveyed to determine household gathering practices and use of edible wild plants in the family diet. While all household members gathered most efforts were by women, who collected on average 1.3-3.5 times/week depending on the season. All respondents reported that local availability of wild species with culinary and medicinal value had declined in recent decades. Column chromatography and spectrophotometry were used to determine the beta-carotene content of 22 of the most commonly consumed species. Mean values ranged from 10,290 to 31 microg/100 g sample (858 to 3 microg RE/100 g); 14 species measured at least 2400 microg/100 g (300 microg RE/100 g). Most plants identified with reasonable to high quantities of beta-carotene were eaten raw, steamed for more than 20 min, or were cooked and consumed without the fat source needed to facilitate absorption. The contribution of beta-carotene from these species to Karen diet, therefore, is problematical.