Nutrient profile and antioxidant components of Costus speciosus Sm. and Costus igneus Nak.

Leaves powder of two medicinal plants, viz. Costus speciosus (Koenig) Sm. and Costus igneus N.E.Br. was analyzed for their proximate composition and antioxidant components. Both the species contain 18 and 15.3% protein, 46 and 120 mg iron, 81 and 216 mg ascorbic acid, 660 and 1833μg β-carotene, 149 and 25 mg α-tocopherol, 75 and 400 mmol of GSH, 4.4 and 2.1g total phenols and 0.848 and 1.89 mg/g extract of total flavonoids, respectively. The powders were subjected to sequential extraction and screened for phytochemicals. The data revealed that both the plants are good sources of nutrients and natural antioxidant components. Further studies are needed to evaluate the medicinal properties of these plants.