Santrauka:
Baigiamajame bakalauro darbe aprašoma, kaip augalai pasisavina nitratus, nuo ko priklauso nitratų kiekis juose, glaustai nurodoma, kokį poveikį žmogaus organizmui gali padaryti nitratai, aptariama, kaip būtų galima sumažinti nitratų kiekį maiste. Nitratų kiekio trumpavaisių ir ilgavaisių agurkų mėginiuose vertinime aptariama tyrimo metodai ir rezultatai. Išvadose apibendrinama tiriamojo darbo rezultatai. Rekomendacijose pateikti siūlymai, kaip būtų galima žmonėms daugiau sužinoti apie nitratus.
Description:
Amount of nitrates in cucumbers People in Europe and the rest of the world are eating more and more vegetables each year. Because of the world‘s growing demand for food, more vegetables are needed to be fertilized and grown so most farmers use chemicals like pesticides or nitrogen fertilizers in order to make plants grow faster and to protect them from diseases and pests. Vegetable‘s ability to absorb nitrates depends on their species as some species can absorb much more of it than others. According to European Food Safety Authority (EFSA, 2008c) daily intake of nitrates should not be more than 3,7 mg / kg b.w.. Taking small amounts of nitrates is safe but high dosages can be harmful, especially for children. The main purpose of this thesis is to evaluate the amount of nitrates in cucumbers. Stages of research: 1) to explain what determines the amount of nitrates in vegetables and how nitrates affect human health; 2) to determine the amount of nitrates in cucumbers; 3) to compare the amount of nitrates in slicing and pickling cucumbers. Methodes. 12 slicing and 12 pickling cucumbers were examined. Cucumbers were examined during different seasons: in autumn, winter and spring. Countries of origin (Spain, Greece, Turkey, Lithuania) were considered. The amount of nitrates was determined according to the LAND 65-2005 standard. The spectrometer was used to determine the amount of nitrates. According to the obtained data, it was found that Lithuanian cucumbers had the highest nitrates in comparison with other countries. Cucumber samples had most of all nitrates in autumn. Most of the cucumbers had very high levels of nitrates.
