Fig (Ficus carica) leaves: Composition and functional properties

Abstract

These nutraceuticals and functional food had a rich culture regarding fruit and leaves for millennia, and the researcher further focuses on biological activities. Ficus carica leaves embarrassed diverse bioactive functional ingredients. Their therapeutic characteristic has been fixed in the British and Spanish pharmacopeias. Due to the high contents of bioactive compounds and antioxidants with numerous health benefits, fig consumption is getting immense attention. Apart from fruit, non-edible plant parts are also getting attention owing to their bioactive phytochemical composition. The purpose of the current chapter is to analyze and make a productive discussion on current knowledge on the extraction of the bioactive compounds along with the composition of natural product classes, including phenolic acids, flavonoids, anthocyanin, anthocyanidins, coumarins, vitamins, carotenoids, fatty acids, volatile oils and phytosterols that are responsible for health-promoting effects and well-accepted sensory properties of fig.