This book is the result of collaboration between botanists and food chemists, with the purpose of improving the knowledge of the main wild species of traditional use as foods in the Mediterranean area, focus on ethnobotanical aspects, natural production, uses and nutritional aspects. One of the novelties of the book would be the publication of complete food composition tables of more than 40 species, which are not usually included in nutrient databases of foods. Many of the data included comes from the chemical analysis of representative samples of these species and other are compiled from the scientific literature. Since this topic had not been fully studied, this book provides an interesting tool to be used with the purpose of the revalorization of wild food species, preservation of their traditional uses, and also as alternatives to improve the diversity of modern Mediterranean diets.
This book provides the latest published nutritional data about wild edible plants traditionally consumed in the Mediterranean region. This information, not usually included in nutrient databases of foods, provides insight into the revalorization of wild food species and preservation of their traditional uses. The text also presents wild edible plants as alternatives to improve the diversity of modern Mediterranean diets, as they may represent valuable sources of nutrients often lacking in modern societies, such as fiber or vitamin B9.
This work has expanded from the two initial groups, to involve different contributors, including experts from different countries, most of them bordering the Mediterranean Sea. As a result, a multidisciplinary approach has been achieved.The book is organized into four parts that deals with different aspects of wild edible plants, the last one and largest offering a detailed compilation of ethnobotanical and nutritional information about someof the most important Mediterranean wild edible plants.
"Chapters on the contribution of wild plants to dietary intakes do a nice job of connecting the kinds of nutritional data presented in the monographs to functions of those nutrients in the human body. Excellent use is made of photographs, in particular as they are gathered together to illustrate different aspects of one theme. ? a vast amount of pertinent information is crammed into the book." (Susanne Masters, Economic Botany, Vol. 70 (4), December, 2016)
