Review on orange fleshed sweet potato: A miracle crop to reduce Vitamin A deficiency

Abstract

Vitamin A deficiency is caused by a habitual diet that provides too little bio available vitamin A to meet physiologic needs. Orange-Fleshed Sweet Potato is now emerging as an important member of the tropical tuber crops having great possibility for being adopted as regular diet of the consumer food chain to tackle the problem of vitamin A deficiency. Apart from cheap source of energy, Orange-fleshed sweet potato is an excellent source of the β-carotene. This crop is also gaining importance as the cheapest source of antioxidant having several physiological attributes like anti-oxidation, anti-cancer and may help in protection against liver injury and coronary heart disease. Orange fleshed sweet potato is the most suiting as biofortified crop to combat micronutrient malnutrition in small and marginal farming community.