Abstract
The use of functional foods in the dietary regime proves to be pragmatic approach to ensure better health and well-being. In
this regard, date fruit is a promising source of certain essential nutrients. In the present work, the nutritional profile of three
selected Pakistani date cultivars namely Dhaki, Aseel and Zahidi was explored. The results indicated that Aseel cultivar
contains the highest moisture trailed by Dhaki and Zahidi. More protein was present in the Zahidi cultivar as 4.60±0.18%
followed by Dhaki and Aseel as 4.22±0.15 and 3.72±0.14%, respectively. However, the crude fat content was higher in Aseel
and Zahidi dates as compared to Dhaki (1.28±0.04%). The fiber content was the highest in Zahidi (7.19±0.27%) followed by
Dhaki (6.47±0.23%) and Aseel dates (4.84±0.17%). The ash content was recorded as 1.54±0.06, 0.94±0.03 and 1.91±0.07%
in Dhaki, Aseel and Zahidi, respectively. Among the analyzed minerals, potassium was dominant in all the selected varieties.
The highest potassium content was found in Zahidi (870.83±32.39 mg/100g), followed by Dhaki (640.23±24.97 mg/100g) and
Aseel (577.30±17.90 mg/100g) on fresh weight basis. Calcium was also high in Zahidi as 96.86±3.18 mg/100g trailed by Aseel
(58.42±2.04 mg/100g) and Dhaki (37.19±1.30 mg/100g). Similar trend was observed in case of sodium and iron contents. The
sugar profile of selected cultivars was assessed chromatographically and results revealed the highest reducing sugars in Zahidi
(39.51±0.54%), trailed by Aseel (34.90±0.46%) and Dhaki (31.31±0.69%). Glucose was present in higher amounts in Dhaki
as compared to Aseel and Zahidi. While, better fructose content was exhibited by Zahidi followed by Aseel and Dhaki.
Maximum amount of sucrose was found in Zahidi variety (26.15±0.37%) trailed by Dhaki (20.11±0.29%) and Aseel
(17.22±0.24%).
