Iron is an essential element for human life since it participates in many functions in the human body, including oxygen transport, immunity, cell division and differentiation, and energy metabolism. Iron homeostasis is mainly controlled by intestinal absorption because iron does not have active excretory mechanisms for humans. Thus, efficient intestinal iron bioavailability is essential to reduce the risk of iron deficiency anemia. There are two forms of iron, heme and nonheme, found in foods. The average daily dietary iron intake is 10 to 15 mg in humans since only 1 to 2 mg is absorbed through the intestinal system. Nutrient-nutrient interactions may play a role in dietary intestinal iron absorption. Dietary inhibitors such as calcium, phytates, polyphenols and enhancers such as ascorbic acid and proteins mainly influence iron bioavailability. Numerous studies have been carried out for years to enhance iron bioavailability and combat iron deficiency. In addition to traditional methods, innovative techniques are being developed day by day to enhance iron bioavailability. This review will provide information about iron bioavailability, factors affecting absorption, iron deficiency, and recent studies on improving iron bioavailability.

Food processing sustainability, as well as waste minimization, are key concerns for the modern food industry. A significant amount of waste is generated by the fruit juice industry each year. In addition to the economic losses caused by the removal of these wastes, its impact on the environment is undeniable. Therefore, researchers have focused on recovering the bioactive components from fruit juice processing, in which a great number of phytochemicals still exist in the agro-industrial wastes, to help minimize the waste burden as well as provide new sources of bioactive compounds, which are believed to be protective agents against certain diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and diabetes. Although these wastes contain non-negligible amounts of bioactive compounds, information on the utilization of these byproducts in functional ingredient/food production and their impact on the sensory quality of food products is still scarce. In this regard, this review summarizes the most recent literature on bioactive compounds present in the wastes of apple, citrus fruits, berries, stoned fruits, melons, and tropical fruit juices, together with their extraction techniques and valorization approaches. Besides, on the one hand, examples of different current food applications with the use of these wastes are provided. On the other hand, the challenges with respect to economic, sensory, and safety issues are also discussed.

Members of the Prosopis genus are native to America, Africa and Asia, and have long been used in traditional medicine. The Prosopis species most commonly used for medicinal purposes are P. africana, P. alba, P. cineraria, P. farcta, P. glandulosa, P. juliflora, P. nigra, P. ruscifolia and P. spicigera, which are highly effective in asthma, birth/postpartum pains, callouses, conjunctivitis, diabetes, diarrhea, expectorant, fever, flu, lactation, liver infection, malaria, otitis, pains, pediculosis, rheumatism, scabies, skin inflammations, spasm, stomach ache, bladder and pancreas stone removal. Flour, syrup, and beverages from Prosopis pods have also been potentially used for foods and food supplement formulation in many regions of the world. In addition, various in vitro and in vivo studies have revealed interesting antiplasmodial, antipyretic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, anticancer, antidiabetic and wound healing effects. The phytochemical composition of Prosopis plants, namely their content of C-glycosyl flavones (such as schaftoside, isoschaftoside, vicenin II, vitexin and isovitexin) has been increasingly correlated with the observed biological effects. Thus, given the literature reports, Prosopis plants have positive impact on the human diet and general health. In this sense, the present review provides an in-depth overview of the literature data regarding Prosopis plants’ chemical composition, pharmacological and food applications, covering from pre-clinical data to upcoming clinical studies.