Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Breast cancer patients commonly experience iron deficiency anemia due to disease progression and treatment-related effects such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy. The present study aimed to enhance the micronutrient profile of the formulated nutri-bar, particularly iron and vitamin C content, in order to improve hemoglobin status and immunity by using amla and black cumin powder, and to evaluate its nutritional composition, antioxidant potential, and sensory acceptability and providing nutritional education to breast cancer patients. amla and black cumin powder incorporated nutri-bar was prepared in five variations (V1-V5) along with a control sample. According to sensory evaluation among all formulations, variation 2 (V2) selected as best sample which contains 10g of amla powder and 10g of black cumin powder. The iron and vitamin C content of the developed nutri-bar was found to be 14.7mg/100g and 102mg/100g respectively. The developed nutri-bar provides high energy, protein and dietary fiber, which helps to fulfill the nutritional requirements of the patients. The TPC and DPPH free radical scavenging activity of the developed test nutri-bar was 4.85mg/gm and 601mg/100g respectively which may help to reduce cellular damage and neutralize free radicals in women with breast cancer. Shelf-life study conducted for 0th-15th days shows that acceptable TPC, $52 \times 10^3$ CFU/gm on 15th day, therefore it is suitable for consumption upto 15 days. Cost of per nutria-bar is 9.38 Rs which is economically feasible, packaging and labelling was done for further marketing purpose. Nutritional education was provided to 20 women with breast cancer, and knowledge was assessed using KAP. The post test scores showed 1.8 times improvement compared to the pre-test scores.
Authors: A. Sharmila, L. Venipriyadharshini
Institution: Periyar University
Language: English
Subfield: Food Science
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7203449502