Salicylates in foods

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Volume 85
August 1985
Number 8
Research
95 0 �==�----------------------------�----------------------------
Salicylates in foods
Anne R. Swain, Stephen P. Dutton,
and A. Stewart Truswell'
Human Nutrition Unit. University of Sydney, New South
Wales, Australia
To determine salicylate content, 333 food items were
anaivzed. Foods were homogenized with 25% sodium
hydroxide, allowed to stand overnight, acidified with
concentrated hydrochloric acid, and then extracted with
warm diethyl ether over 5 hours. The extract was dried a�d
taken up in dilute sodium bicarbonate solution tor
analysis. Salicylic acid was separated by high perform­
ance liquid chromatography and quantified by reading at
235 nm. Salicylic acid standards were used throughout to
standardize extractions and analyses. This is the most
comprehensive set of data on food salicylates yet pU.b­
lished; extraction appears to have been more complete tor
some foods, giving higher values than those previously
published. ,'vlost fruits, eS;Jecially berry fruits and dried
fruits, contain salicylate. Vegetables show a wide range
from 0 to 6 mg salicylate per 100 gm food (for gherkins).
Some herbs and spices were found to contain very high
amounts per 100 gm, e.g., curry powder, paprika, thyme,
garam masala, and rosemary. Among beverages, tea
provides substantial amounts of salicylate. Licorice and
peppermint candies and some honeys contain sal icylates.
Cereals, meat, fish, and dairy products contain none or
negligible amounts.
The Feingold diet for treatment of hyperactivity in chil­
dren was devised to exclude foods that contain artificial
colorings, artificial flavorings, and natural salicylates.
Exclusion of fruits and vegetables was based on German
analyses of sal icylate content done at the turn of the
century. Information on the exact quantities of salicylate
in foods has not been generally available , nor has it been
'The .uthor<; t�ank Mr<;. S. Vindedz,s and Or. F B. Wh,tehead ;or copies of
unpublished references '24 and 51) Th�v are .ery grateful to Professor A. Basten,
Josephme Rogers, MaXlne Hosk,ng, Dr. Roberc Lobl.y, Dr. Shervl Van Nunen and
Professor R. CI.ncy for support and encouragement
and 10 Ceo" Hutct'ison ror
IHPLC' methodology. The
adVice on high performance liqUid chromatography
authors also thank Dr. I. R. Brown and M. P. Smyth !Mass Specuometry Un,t,
School oi Chemistry, Linlyef>ity or Sydney) ior the CC-.MS
salicylate peaks irom the HPLC.
co�f"mation
of
certain whether permitted foods are completely free of
salicylate. There have been claims from fruit canners that
some of the fruits excluded by Feingord did not contain
appreciable salicylate.
Emphasis on salicylates in hyperactivity has decreased;
there has been more interest lately in artificial colors (1).
Meanwhile, interest has been growing in the role of
salicylates in some cases of urticaria and of asthma. It has
long been known that urticaria may follow the ingestion of
acetyl salicylic acid medication, but it is now realized that
salicylates in foods also can precipitate acute urticaria or
exacerbate chronic urticaria.
Salicylate-sensitive urticaria was first nored by Calnan
(2,3). Warin (4) in 1960 reported that 22 of 70 patients with
chronic urticaria developed exacerbations after adminis­
tration of aspirin. Moore-Robinson and Warin (5) reported
an incidence of 22% of 228 patients, and Champion et al.
(6) in 1969 found that 21% of 268 patients with chronic
urticaria reacted to aspirin. lames and Warin (7) in 1970
reported further investigations in a series of 100 patients
with chronic urticaria. Ninety-six patients had been given
test doses of aspirin in a "patient blind" manner; 37 of the
96 patients gave a positive reaction to the test dose.
Several authors reported that diets constructed to ex­
clude salicylate mav induce prolonged remission of urti­
caria in those patients who have shown a positive re­
sponse to oral aspirin challenge (8-11). In 1972, Lackey
(12) discussed the part played by salicylates in various
foods. Seventy-five percent of the patients of Warin and
Smith (11) either cleared or considerably improved after
being on the appropriate diet for a 2-month period. This
improvement was in line with the results obtained by
others, including Michaelsson and Juhlin (8) in 1973 and
Doeglas (9) in 1975. More recently, Ros et al. (13) reported
their results with exclusion diets. Fifty-nine patients who
reacted to salicylates, preservatives, and azo dyes were
given a diet designed to reduce consumption of those
items. This produced remission in 24% and improvement
in 57%. Similarly, Juhlin (14) in 1981 reported that most
patients improve when given a diet free from the chemi­
cals to which they reacted.
It is well known that aspirin may exacerbate asthma.
McDonald et al. (15) reported that 8 of 42 patients with
severe asthma and no history of aspirin exacerbations
reacted to an aspirin challenge ci 540 mg.
Journal
of The
American
Dietetic Association
Research
Because we could find no comprehensive list of
amounts of salicylate in foods, we extended a clinical
study of oral challenges (aspirin, tartrazine, preservatives,
and brewers yeast) in patients with chronic urticaria
(16,17) and started to estimate salicylates in some local
fruits and vegetables.
Early reports on salicylates in foods used thin-layer
chromatography (18-24). More recently, most reports in
the literature have used gas chromatography with mass
spectrometry (25-49). Details of how the salicylate was
extracted before estimation have usually been sparse or
even lacking.
We used thin-layer chromatography at first a!1d then for
more precise quantitation developed a sensitive specific
method of high performance liquid chromatography and
combined it with an efficient liquid extraction procedure.
We have used the following method to measure salicylate
in most common foods.
Extraction efficiencies were calculated. They varied with
the composition of the food. Fruits, vegetables. condi­
ments, and beverages gave extraction rates of greater them
85%, compared with cereals and protein foods for which
the extraction rate was approximately 60%. Validation
was carried out by extracting several foods 20 times along
with spiked samples. Several foods were selected which,
by previous analysis, had been found to contain salicylate
in amounts that were relatively low (carrots and pumpkin),
medium (orange and pineapple), or high (thyme). The
roods had varied physical attributes.
For a further discussion of the methodology, see the
appendix.
Method
Samples of foods and beverages weighing approximately
100 gm were homogenized in a commercial blender,
along with 100 ml 25% sodium hydroxide and 2 gm
calcium chloride. Duplicate samples corresponding to 50
gm food or beverage were weighed out. To one sample of
each pair,S mg salicylic acid standard was added. 80th
samples were allowed to stand overnight. The two ho­
mogenates were then acidified with concentrated hydro­
chloric acid (HCI) (AR grade) and placed in separate liquid
extractors. Two hundred milliliters diethyl ether was
placed m a round-bottomed flask, along with several glass
boiling beads to prevent bumping. The flask was then
placed in a heating mantle and connected to the liquid
extractors and condensers. Extraction was carried out for
5 hours. The ether extract was next allowed to cool and
to evaporate to dryness in the fume cupboard. The sample
was then taken up in 20 ml 2% sodium bicarbonate
(NaHCO)l and filtered prior to analysis.
The high performance chromatographic system con�
sisted of a Varian 5060 pumping system with Rheodyne
7125 injection valve, several different detectors, Varian
COS III computing integrator, and Houston Omniscribe
recorder.
The column was a Waters ),I.Bondpak (18 reverse phase
column (300mm x 4 .6mm ) fitted with a precolumn
packed with Vydac RP P389 packing material. The eluent
was monitored with a Varian Vari-Chrom variable
wavelength detector with waveiength at 235 nm con­
nected to the recorder; 20 ),1.1 samples were injected.
The isocratic solvent was 20% methanol (Ajax
Unicnrom), 80% glass-distilled water with 0.01 mMol
orthophosphoric acid and ion paiting reagent of 0.0025
mMoI tetra butylammonium phosphate (TBAP) made to
pH 7.0 with 25% sodium hydroxide solution . The sali­
cylic acid standard was 0.25 gm/L in 2% NaHCO) and
was stored at 4OC.
The column was operated with an isocratic solvent at
ambient temperature and a flow program which resulted
in a back pressure of 90 to 150 atmospheres. The flow rate
was 1.0 mllminute for 7 minutes, increasing to 2.0 ml!
minute over the next 3 minutes.
Results from triplicate or multiple extractions were used
to calculate the total salicylate per 100 gm food sample.
Results and discussion
This article presents a list of foods that we have analyzed
for salicylate. When present in significant amounts, sali­
cylate is reported as milligrams per 100 gm edible portion.
Items are arranged by food groups in Table 1. The two
right-hand columns of the table summarize information
currently available in the literature.
Fruits
We found that most fruits contained considerable
amounts'of salicylate. Raisins and prunes had the highest
amounts. Most berry fruits are significant sources of
salicylate, with a range from 0.76 mg/l00 gm for mulber­
ries to 4.4 mgl100 gm for raspberries. Apples showed
considerable variation of salicylate content between vari­
eties.
Dried fruits have relatively high salicylate coments
compared with their fresh counterparts because of the
removal of water during the drying process. Heat process­
ing for canning does not seem to affect appreCiably the
salicylate content of fruit. We had the impression that
those fruits low in salicylate often have a less piq'Jant
flavor, e.g., mangos, pawpaws, and pears, compared with
pineapples, oranges, and the berry fruits.
Vegetables
Within the vegetable group, salicylate content varied
widely among the raw foods. It ranged from negiigible in
bamboo shoots, dried beans, green cabbage, celery,
lentils, lettuce, dried peas, and swedes to a high of 6.1
mg/l00 gm in gherkins.
Fresh tomatoes contain only small amounts of salicy­
late, 0.13 mg/100 gm. However, many commonly used
tomato products are considerable sources of salicylate:
canned tomatoes, 0.53 mg; tomato paste, 1.44 mg;
tomato sauce, 2.38 mg; and tomato soup, 0.54 mg. The
increase in available salicylate in th"! processed tomato
products compared with the fresh can be attributed to the
use of a fully ripe raw material, to cooking, and to
concentration, but it is probably due mainly to the
addition of flavoring herbs and spices.
Condiments
Some of the herbs and spices contain much more salicy­
late than has previously been reported for any food. We
found that curry powder contains 218 mg salicylate per
100 gm. Others almost as high were paprika, thyme, dill
powder, garam masala, oregano, and turmeric.
Although amounts of these condiments used in food are
951
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods'"
type
food
952
fnlit
apple
apricot
Ardmona
John West
Soc om in
John West
Australian rockmelon
sweet
lohn West
Morello Sour
cranberry
S. &. w.
cu rrants
black currant
red currant
(from Queensland)
custard apple
dates
figs
guava
gra pes
CaI ·D ate
S. & W. Kadota
Calamata string
Gold Reel
Red Malaila
Sul tan a
S. & w. light seedless
Berfi Dark
Sanitarium Light
currants I.P.e.
raisins A.D.F.A.
sultana
grapefruit
Berri
kiwi fruit
lemon
loganberry
leq ua!
lychee
mandarin
mango
mulberry
nectarine
orange
John West
Berri
passion fruit
pawpaw
peach
pear
persimmon
pineapple
salicyla.te
reported
in
literature
references
mglfOOgmt
Golden Delicious
Red Delicious
Granny Smith
lonathan
Ardmona
Mountain Maid
Letona
avocado
banana
blackberry
blueberry
boysenberry
canteloupe
cherry
state
Letona
letona
Packham (with skin!
Packham (Aa sk in l
William (With skin)
Letona Bartlett
Go l de n C irc le
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
canned
juice
fresh
canned
nectar
fresh
fresh
canned
canned
canned
fresh
fresh
canned
canned
canned
sauce
frozen
frozen
fresh
fresh
dried
fresh
canned
dried
canned
fresh
f resh
canned
juice
juice
dried
dried
dried
fresh
jUice
fresh
fresh
canned
fresh
canned
fresh
fresh
fresh
fres h
fresh
lUlce
fresh
fresh
fresh
canned
nectar
fresh
fresh
fres h
canned
fresh
fresh
canned
aOBj
0.19
0.59
0.38
0.55*
0.19i
2.58
1.42*
0.14*
Q.6Gi
m
1.86
2.76
2.04
1..50*
0.85
2.78
0.30
1.64
1.44
3.06
5.06
SO
yes
yes
53
50,51
yes
51
yes
yes
50
25, 3 3
yes
23.27.51
yes
23
yes
28.29
yes
25,50
Q.21
3.73
4.50*
51
0.18
0.94 }
0.25
0.64
2.02
1 .88
0.16
25
o.ea
0.18
5.80
&.62*
7.80
0.&8*
0.42
0.32
0.18;
4.40
0.26
0.36
0.56*
0.11
0.76
0.49
2.39*
0.18:
0.14*
0.08*
0.58:
0.68*
0.10:
0.27*
0;
0.3a
0*
0.18*
2.10;
1.36
yes
yes
25,53
51
y es
18,50
yes
yes
SO
18
yes
51
yes
yes
yes
yes
SO
1 8,50,52
Sl,52
26,30
y es
yes
yes
50.51
31,32.50
51
y es
50,51,52
·Most trade names are those of products of various Australian companies. Some varieties of foods also ir e Australian.
tEdible portion.
;Multipie extractions.
#Ashoor (24) found no detectable salicylate in grapefruit, lemon. orange. strawberry, and langelc.
"For coffee. milligrams salicylate per 100 ml made from 2 gm powder in 100 ml waler.
IiFor t ea . milligrams salicylate ;.>er 100 ml infusion made from two standard tea bags (4 gm dry leaves).
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods· (cont)
type
food
plum
Golden Circle
Blood (red)
Kelsey (green)
Wilson (red)
S_ f> C. dark red
letona prunes
pomegranate
raspberries
rhubarb
strawberry
tamar i llo
tangelo
wa termelon
youngberry
vegetable
Triangle Spears
Sunshine
blackeye
Borlotti
broad. "vicia faba"
brown
green French
l ima
mung
soya
soya grits
bean ;;prouts
beet root
Golden Circle
broccoli
brussels sorouts
c ab bage
c arrot
cauliflower
celery
chicory
dwves
choko
cucumoer
eggplant
endive
horser ad i si'!
leek
lentil
l ettu c e
marrow
m ush r oom
okra
olive
onion
parsnip
peas
juice
0.16*
0.21
0.095
0.11
1.16
6.87
0_07
fresh
fresh
fresh
canned
can ned
fresh
fresh
frozen
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
canned
5.14
3.88
0.13
1.36*
0_10
0_72
0.48*
3.06
fresh
fresh
alfalfa
aspara gus
bamboo shoots
beans
salicylate
stare
green
red
(Chayate)
1'10 pee l)
Aristocrat gherkin
(WIth peell
{no peel)
Eskal
brown
red
(Cucurbita pepol
Champ l gn on
Zanae
black Krait
green Krait
chick-pea
green
0.70
0.14*
0.32*
0
0
0.08
canned
canned
dried
dried
fresh
dried
fresh
dr i ed
dried
dried
dried
fresh
fresh
canned
fresh
fresh
iresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
iresh
ir!!sh
fresh
canned
fresh
fresh
iresh
canned
fresh
dried
dried
fresh
fresh
fresh
c anned
can ned
canned
canned
fresh
fresh
dried
fresh
reported
in
literature
references
yes
51
yes
50
yes
50,51
yes
25,33,50
yes
SO
yes
25,33.50.53
yes
SO
no
yes
24#
20,50
yes
50
yes
yes
20,50,51
51
yes
39
yes
21.50
yes
yes
yes
yes
SO
19
21.51
no
no
22
22
yes
yes
y�s
20
20
20
o.n
0.002
0.11*
0
0
0
0
0.06
0_18*
0.32*
0.65;
0.07
0;
0.08*
0.23*
0.16*
0;
102
0.03
0.01*
0]8;
&.14;
088:1:
0.30:::
1.9
o 18
SO
no
22
yes
19
no
22
yes
no
41
yes
20,50,51
0.08
0
0
0:::
0.17
024
1.26
0.59
0.34*
1.29:;:
0.16*
0.45
0
0.04*
"Most t rade names are those of products of various Australian companies_
. Some varieties of foods also are Australian.
tEdible portion.
;Multiple extractions.
#Ashoor (24) found no detectable salicylate in grapefruit. lemon. orange. strawberry. and (angelo.
III'For coffee. milligrams salicylate per 100 ml made from 2 gm powder in 100 ml water
UFO( tea, milligrams salicylate per 100 m! II1fusion made from t\vO standard tea bags (4 gm dry leaves).
.
22
953
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods·
954
type
food
peppers
pimientos
potato
pumpkin
radish
shallots
spinach
squash
swede
sweet corn
sweet potato
tomato
(com.)
green split pea
yellow split pea
green chili
red chili
yellow-green chili
sweet, green
(Capsicum)
Arson sweet red
white (with peel)
white (no peel)
red, small
baby
Mountain Maid
niblets
Mountain Maid
creamed
white
yellow
letona
Goulbum Valley
Heinz
letona
Campbell
leggo
Tom Pi pe r
Heinz
Kiaora
P.M.U.
Fountain
Heinz
tumip
watercress
zucch;ni
IXL.
P.M.U.
Rosel la
state
dried
dried
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
canned
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
frozen
fresh
salicylate
reported
In
literature
references
yes
20.SO
yes
34.50
yes
yes
20,51
21
yes
22,51
0
0.02
0.64*
1.20;
0.62*
1.20*
0.15
0.12*
0*
0. 1 2*
1.24*
0.03
0.58
0.16*
fresh
fresh
0.63
0
0.13*
yes
SO
canned
0.26*
yes
SO
canned
fresh
fresh
fresh
0.39*
0.50*
0.48*
0.13*
yes
SO,51
yes
yes
0.53:1:
yes
50
20,35,36,37
50,51
51
}
}
yes
50
yes
50,51
l
yes
49,SO,51 ,52
no
20
canned
juice
juice
juice
paste
paste
paste
soup
soup
soup
sauce
sauce
sauce
sauce
sa uc e
fresh
fresh
fresh
O.lot
0.12:1:
0.18*
0.57*
1.44*
0.43*
0.54*
0.54*
0.32;
OW
2.48:1:
1.06*
0.98*
2.15*
0.16*
0.84*
1.00
condiments
allspice
aniseed
bay leaf
bas i l
"BonoxH
canella
cardamom
caraway
cayenne
celery
c h il i
cinnamon
cloves
coriander
cum;n
curry
pow der
powder
leaves
powder
powder
powder
powder
powder
powder
flakes
po wder
powder
whole
leaves
powder
powder
dry
dry
dry
dry
liquid
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
fresh
dry
dry
5.2
22.8
2.52
3.4
0.28
42.6
7.7
2.82
17.6
10.1
1.38
1.30
15.2*
5.74
0.20
45.0
218
SS
yes
yes
"Most trade names are those oi products of various Australian compan ie s . Some varieties of foods also are Australian.
tEdible portion.
*Multiple extractions.
liIAshoor (24) found no detectable salicylate in grapefruit. lemon. orange, strawoory, and tangelo.
"For coffee, milligrams salicylate pe r 100 ml made from 2 gm powder in 100 ml water.
IIFor tea, milligrams salicylate per 100 ml infusion made from !WO standard tea bags!4 gm dry leaves�
56,57,58
54
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods· (cont.)
type
food
d ill
fennel
fenugreek
fi ve sp i c e
garam masala
garlic
ginget
m ac e
"Marmite"
mint
mixed herbs
mustard
nutmeg
oregano
paprika
parsley
pep pe r
pimiento
rosemary
saffron
sage
soy sauce
Tabasco Pepper
t andor i
tarragon
turmeric
thyme
vanilla
vinegar
Worcestershire
sauce
"Vegemite
powder
powder
powder
powder
powder
bulbs
root
state
fresh
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
fresh
fresh
d ry
powder
Sanitarium
common garden
leaves
powder
dry
dry
powder
dry
powder
hot powder
sweet powder
leaves
black powder
white powder
powder
powder
powder
leaves
paste
fresh
d ry
dry
0.10:1:
dry
dry
dry
dry
liquid
liquid
liquid
liquid
paste
no
22
yes
22
yes
21,22
26
2.4:1:
56
20 3
6.2*
powder
references
4.5
32.2
0.71*
9.4*
55.6
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
sauce
reported
in
literature
30.8
66.8
5.7
0.06*
liquid
Krait
6.9
94.4
0.8
12.2
dfy
fresh
Mcllhenny
powder
powder
leaves
essertce
malt
white
salicylate
1.1*
4.9
68
0
21.7
0
0.45
38,40
0
34.8
76.4
183
1.44
0
1.33
64.3
0.81*
drinks
".A.ktavite"
cereal coiieefr
Bambu
Dandelion
"Eceo"
"�atu(e's Cupoa"
"Reform"
Coca-Cola
coffeel!
herbal teal!
Andronicus Instant
Bushells Instant
Bushells Turkish Style
Gibsons Instant
Hams Mocha Kenya
Harris Instant I
Harris Instant I1
International Roast
,"1axwell House Instant
Moccona Instant
Moccona DecaffeInated
Nescafe Instant
Nescafe Decaffein ared
Robert Timms Instant
c amom i lle
fruit
peppermint
rose hip
powder
powder
powder
powder
powder
powder
liquid
powder
powder
powder
powder
beans
powder
oowder
;:lO\"der
powder
granules
powder
granules
powder
powder
0
0.15
0.08
0
2.26
0,38
0,25
0
021
o 19
0.12
0.45
°
0,10
0,96
yes
0.84
0,64
°
0.59
"
v
bag
bag
bag
0,16
006
0,36
110
bag
0.40
"Most trade names are those of products of various ,,",ustralian companies.. Some var ieties of foods also are Australian,
tEdible portion.
;Multiple extractions.
#.A.shoor (24) found no detectable salicylate in grapefruit. lemon. oran� strawberry. and tangelo.
"For coffee, milligrams salicylate per 100 ml ma.de from 2 gm powder in 100 m! water,
I,Fo r tea , milligrams salicylate oer 100 rnl iniusion made from !'Wo stand.vd tea bags 14 gm dry leaves�
45
955
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods· (cont.)
956
food
HMilo"
·Ovaltine"
rose hip reaU
teaU
type
Oel rosa
Asco
BH/y
Burmese Green
Bushells
Golden Days
Decaffeinated
Harris
Indian Green
Peony Jasmine
Old Chinese
Tetley
Twining s:
Earl Grey
English Breakfast
DarjeeHng
Irish Breakfast
lapsang Souchong
Lemon Scented
Orange Pekoe
Prince of Wales
cereals
arrowroot
barley
buckwheat
maize
millet
oats
r ice
rye
wheat
powder
unpearled
grains
mea l
gr ains
hulled grains
meal
brown grains
white grains
rolled
grains
pecan nuts
pine nuts
pistachiO nuts
poppyseed
sesame seed
sunflower seed
walnuts
water chestnut
golden syrup
maple syrup
powder
powder
syrup
ba g
le aves
le aves
bag
0.01
0
1.17
6.4
2.48
2.97
4 .78
bag
bag
leaves
leaves
leaves
bag
0.37
4.0
2.97
T .9
1.9
bag
bag
leaves
bag
bag
bag
l eaves
bag
3.0
3.0
4.24
3.89
2.40
7.34
2.75
dry
dry
d ry
0
0
0
0.43
0
0
0
0;
0;
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
2.97
0
5ocomin
fresh
fresh
fr esh
dry
fresh
fresh
fresh
paste
fresh
fresh
fresh
dry
dry
dry
fresh
canned
3.0
0.46
0.07
0.26
0.14
0.52
1.12
0.23
0.12
0.51
0.55
0
0.23
0.12
0.)0
2.92
powder
powder
Allowrie
Aristocrat
Capillano
Mudgee
"No Frills"
C.S.R.
Camp
dry
dry
l iqu i d
liqUid
l i qLJ i d
liquid
liquid
liquid
liquid
dessicated
unshelled
Sanltarium butter
reported
in
literature
5.57
0
wgars
carob
cocoa
honey
salicylate
dry
nuts and seeds
almonds
Brazil nuts
cashew nuts
coconut
hazelnuts
Macadamia nuts
peanuts
state
0;
0;
2.5
3.7
10.14
3.9
11.24
0.10;
0
"Most trade names are those of proo\,;cts of various Austra!ian companies. Some varieties of foods also are Australian.
tEdible portion.
�Multlple extractions.
#Ashoor (24) found no detectable >alicylate in grapefrUit, lemon. orange, strawberry, and tangelo.
fiFor coffee, milligrams salicylate per 100 ml made from 2 gm powder in 100 ml water.
IIFor tea, milligrams salicylate per 100 ml infusion made from two standard tea bags (4 gm dry leavesl.
references
46,47,48
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods" (conC./
type
food
sugar
molasses
confectionery
caramel
licorice
pep perm i nts
dairy
cheese
milk
yogurt
kidney
lamb
liver
oyster
pork
pra",n
sa l mon
scallop
tripe
tuna
salicylate
white g ranulated
C.5.R.
dry
liquid
0
Pascall Cream
Barratts
Giant
Aliens SI.ong Mint
Aliens "Koolmint"
Lifesavers
"'Minties"
Aliens "Steamrollers"
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
dry
0.12
9.78
7.96
Blue Vein
Camembert
Cheddar
cottage
Mozarella
Tasty Cheddar
fresh full
cream
full cream
fresh
fresh
f resh
meat, fish
and eggs
beef
c hi c ken
egg
scate
w hite
yolk
LUr'lc!1time Pink
Seakist
fresh
fresh
fresh
liquid
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
fresh
canned
fresh
fresh
canned
reported
in
literature
references
no
43
yes
42
0.22
0.77
7.58
0.86
1.78
2.92
0.05
0.01
0
0
0.Q2
0
0;
0
0;
0;
0
0
0
0;
0.05
0
0
0.04
0
0.02
0
0
alcoholic
drinks
beer
cider
liqueurs
port
sherry
spirits
Reschs Dinner Ale
Toohevs Draught
Toc" s Sheaf Stout
Bulmer's Dry
Bulmer's Sweet
Lilydale Dry
Mercury Dry
Ben ed icti ne
CO l nt re a u
Drambui
Tia ,,",Iaria
McWilliams Royal Reserve
Stonyiell Mellow
Lmdemans Royal Reserve
Sweet
Mildara Supreme Dry
Penfolds Royal Reserve
Sweet
brandy-Hennessy
g m- Gil bey s
rum-Bur'ldaberg
fum-Captain Morgar'l
'
0.35 }
0.23
0.32
0.17
0.19
0.1:0.16
9.04
0.66
1.68
0.83
1.4
4.2
0.56
0.46
0.49
O. +
0
076 }
1.28
·Most trade names are those of products of various Australian compani�s. Some varieties of foods also are Australian.
tEdible portion.
*Multiple extractions.
#Ashoor (24) found no detectable salicylate in grapefruit, lemon, orange, 5lrawberry, and tangelo.
�For coffee, milligrams salicylate per 100 ml made from 2 gm powder in 100 ml water.
IIFor tea, milligrams salicylate per JOO ml infusion made from two st3ndard tea bags (4 gm dry leavesl
957
958
Volume 85
August 1985
Research
Number 8
Table 1. Salicylates in 333 foods- Icont.)
food
wines
type
state
vodka-Smirnoff
whiskey-Johnnie Walker
Buton Dry Vermouth
Kaiser Stuhl Rose
Lindemans Riesling
McWilHams Dry White Wine
McWilliams Cabernet
Sauvignon
McWil1iams Private Bin
Claret
McWilliams Reserve Claret
Penfolds Traminer Riesling
Bin 202
Seaview Rhine Riesling
Stonyfell Ma Chere
Yalumba Champagne
salicylate
o
o
0.46
0.37
0.81
0.10
reported
in
literature
references
no
43
yes
43,44
0.86
0.90
0.35
0.81
0.89
0.69
1.02
"Most trade names are those oi products of various Australian companies. Some varieties of foods also are Australian.
tEdible portion.
;Multiple extractions.
#Ashoor (24) found no detectable salicylate in grapefruit. lemon. orange. strawberry. and tangelo.
"For coffee. milligrams salicylate per 100 ml made irom 2 gm powder in 100 ml water.
IIFor tea. milligrams salicylate per 100 ml infusion made from two standard tea bags (4 gm dry leavesl
small, they can make a significant contribution to dietary
salicylate.
Drinks
The drinks in Table 1 are divided into two subgroups.
alcoholic and nonalcoholic. Within the nonalcoholic
beverages. salicylate varies widely from negl igible in
milk. cocoa, and decaffeinated coffee to a high of 7.3 mg
salicylate per 100 ml in one of the teas.
Teas are thus an important source of salicylate in the
usual diet. We analyzed 18 difierent brands and varieties.
All contained more than 1.9 mg'l00 ml except decaffein­
ated tea, which contained only 0.37 mg. Salicylate is
soluble in methylene chloride. a solvent commonly used
for extraction of caffeine.
Table 1 includes data for nine coffees and five coffee
substitutes. All but one contain less than 0.96 mg salicy­
late per 100 ml. The higher value of 2.26 mg for one cereal
coffee may reflect the raw materials, such as chicory, used
in its manufacture.
Of the alcoholic beverages, wines appear to contain
about the same amount as grape juice (range 0.35 to 1.0
mgilOO ml). Cider contains a low level similar to apple
juice. We found that beer contains appreciable amounts.
which was not previously reported in the literature. T here
was a big range of salicylate in the liqueurs that we tested,
with Benedictine highest. presumably from one of the
secret ingredients.
Sweets
little research has been done by others on the presence of
salicylate in popular sweets and confectionery. However,
porsch et a!. (55) and others have identified salicylate in
anise and mint. We therefore analyzed a representative
number of licorices and peppermints. which have been
listed in Table 1.
Values for cocoa and carob-negligible amounts-are
also included. The peppermints contained variable
amounts. It would appear that high salicylate contents in
mint candies come mostly from additional flavorings like
methyl salicylate.
Legumes, nuts, and seeds
legumes are generally safe for salicy!ate-sensitive people.
AU dry legumes that were analyzed had less than 0.08
mg/l00 gm in the dry state. Soybean5 are low in salicylate;
Similarly the fermented product, soy sauce , contained
negligible amounts.
Table 1 contains information on 10 nuts. Almonds,
water chestnuts, and peanuts (in skin) were moderately
high (3.0, 2.9, and 1.1 mg salicylate per 100 gm, respec­
tively). Other nuts contained small to moderate amounts
(0.07 to 0.5 mgi100 gm), Coconut contains a small
amount. Sesame seeds, poppy seeds. and sunflower seeds
(included here with the nuts) contain negligible amounts
of salicylate.
Cereals
Salicylate levels in nine whole.grain cereals are negligi­
ble. with the exception of a yello.... :naize meal which
contributed 0.43 mgilOO gm.
Meat, poultry, fish, eggs, and dairy products
Beef, lamb, pork, and chicken all have negligible salicy­
late content. liver was found to contain 0.05 mgilOO gm.
Only two fish have been analyzed so far. and both
contained no salicylate. Oysters had none; prawns and
scallops contained 0.04 and 0.02 mgil00 gm, respec­
tively, having more salicylate than most meats or fish but
sti 11 very small amounts.
Dairy products, including cheese, do not contain ap­
preciable amounts of salicylates.
Journal
of
The
American
Dietetic
Research
Association
959
C:!61 Winter, M ,
Conclusion
The values for salicylate in foods that we have obtained
work out to a range from about 10 mg to 200 mglday
salicylate in Western diets. This is of the same order of
magnitude as the challenge dose of salicylate used in
clinical testing (60), usually a 300-mg aspirin tablet. The
usual adult pharmacological dose of aspirin is 600 mg
(two tablets) at a time, often several times a day, Previous
figures for salicylates in most foods are so much smaller
than this that it is difficult to see how the food could have
similar effects to salicylate medication in sensitive individ·
uals.
tl7l
(28)
and 1<1011,
R.: Ober das arOmd
Chim Acta 55:101. 1972,
Gierschner. K . .
8aumann, G.: Arom atic substances in irult Reit:hstolfe
dnd
Acta Chem Scand 21:945, 1967.
tUI
L Aroma 01 cranbernes.
23:109, 1 %9.
viu$idaea. ACta Chem Scand,
Mu",,1', j(,E.:
The
Do, I.E.,
!)a:unkhe,
and Olson,
OX,
01
comparison of volatiles
"nific;ial ripening.
Ill. Juice
of vacc oni um
flavour 01 purple passionfruit Food Tl?Chnol Aust
1973
(31)
passlonsirucht. Hel"
A!'Omen Koerpt!rilegemlttel 18(1):3. 1968.
Anjou, K., and Ven Syclow, E,: Aroma at cranberries, I. Vaccini um vithidaea.
t291 Anjou. K .. and Von $ydow.
DO)
de< gelben
j
peach
fru.t
l.E.:
IsolatIOn, identification and
,1$ rela ted
Food Sci 34.&18,1969.
Kemp. T.R., Knavei, D.E., and Stoltz.
l.P.:
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ha"'E'st maturity and
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and
960
Research
Appendix: Discussion of methodology
We started with shaking homogenized food in ether in a 2 L
separating funnel evaporating to dryness and then taking up in a
small volume of ether for TLC on silica gel. Quantification was
unreliable. We tried gas chromatography of trimethylsilyl deriv­
atives, but the method proved unsatisfactory in our hands. High
performance' liquid chromatography (HPLC) was next tried, and
we found a modified AOAC (59) extraction procedure to be
straightforward and reproducible and to give good recoveries of
added standards.
The modification we now use is stronger sodium hydroxide
(NaOH) (25% overnight instead of 10% NaOH for over 2 hours).
This is done with the aIm of completing hydrolysis and convert­
ing all salicylate compounds to free salicylate. Our acidification
step is also different. HCI is used to bring the pH to 2.0.
Because there was marked emulsion formation in the separat­
ing funnel with some food homogenates and because recoveries
of added standard were only around 50%, we changed the
extraction procedure and used ether in glass extractors over 5
hours. This gives good recoveries of added standard salicylic
acid and benzoic acid.
Specificity of the salicylate peak was checked by two meth­
ods. First. several phenolic compounds chemically similar to
salicylic acid and which might occur in foods were run on the
column. All 20 compounds had retention ti mes different from
the retention time of salicyclic acid (Table 2). Thymol was tested
as well. but no peak was seen with our usual so lvent system.
W h en the so lvent was 50% methanol: 50% water. thymol had a
retention time of 24 minutes and salicylic acid of 2 minutes.
Second, the salicylate peaks tram 11 foods were collected and
analyzed by gas chromatographv and mass spectrometry in the
Mass Spectrometry Unit of Sydney Unlversity's School of Chem­
istry. The foods were two vegetables (maize and radish), two
fruits (red currants and datesl. three herbs or spices (curry. cumin.
and rosemary), two sugary foods ( honey and l i cort ce !. one
sample of wine. and one sam pl e of tea.
Samples of sodium salicylate (AR: were run on the HPLC to
determine retention times. to optimlze conditions for collecti ng
the salicylate pe ak . Peaks from foods with retention times
identical to the sa li cyl a te ;tandard were collected. aCIdified \'Vlth
1 m! 3 M hydrochloric acid. extracted wi th diethyl ether tAR 10
ml. 3 tlmes l and w ashed with di sti l l ed water no ml. 3 times). The
ether solution was drawn off. dried over anhydrous magnesium
sulphate. and filtered through cotton wool into a 1 ml "Reac­
t1Vlal" (Regis). The volume was evaporated to 10 f-LI with dry
n it r o g e n under g entl e heat. Bis (trimeth�"silyl) t r i ­
fluoroacetamlde I BSTFAI i Regi s ) 100 jJ.1 was added 10 a dry
environment and refluxed gently for 1 hour, The solution was
August 1985
Volume 85
Number 8
Table 2. High perfonnance liquid chromatography·
compound
retention time
(minutes)
p-amino benzene
para amino benzoic acid
phthalic acid
salicylamide
salicin
40H ben zoic acid
vaninic acid
sulphosalicylic acid
anthranilic acid
gentisic acid
aspirin
benzoic acid
catechol
theophylline
quercetin
van i llin
acetanilide
phenol
salicylic acid
coumarin
methyl salicylate
2.46
3.20
3.31
3.32
3.43
3.46
3.51
4.68
6.01
6.75
7.10
8.20
8.23
8.34
11.30
11.72
14.41
14.81
16.81
18.88
58.43
'Solvent: 20'" methanol. 80% glass distilled water. 0.01 mmol
H,PO" 0.0025 mmol TBAP pH 7.0
reduced to 10 JoLI under dry nitrogen and injected into the gas
chromatograph.
The column of the gas chromatograph. a Pye 104, was glass
.2 m x 6 mm. packed with QV , 7 (3%) on Chromosorb W
1l00il20 mesh). Helium flow through the column was 30 mll
min. The gas chromatograph was interfaced (via an AEI glassjet
separator) to an AEI M5·30 mass spectrometer operating at 4 KV
with an ionization voltage of 70 ev. The chromatographic trace
was produced by the t ota l ion current monitor of the masS
spectrometer run at 20 ev except when scanning !l0 second!
decad e ), when the ionizingvollage returns to 70 ev. All the peaks
from our own HPlC were found to contain a significant amount
ot salicylate.
Our results are considerably higher than those reported in the
literature, e .g . . about 10 times higher for pineapple juice but
more than 100 times higher for pineapples. We believe this can
be exp I ained pa rtly by the eni c len t extraction proced ure we have
developed but p ro bably mostl y by the conversion of bound
salicylate to free salicylic acid so that we are measuring total
salicylate in the foods.