Chemical Composition and Nutritional Quality of Commercial Tahini

Thanks to its valuable nutritional value and captivating flavour, tahini, an oily paste made from sesame seeds, has recently become popular outside of Middle Eastern cuisine. However, alongside valuable and balanced levels of lipids, proteins, sterols, and minerals, this product may contain various contaminants, including toxic and potentially toxic elements. The aim of this study was therefore to evaluate the quality and safety of seven brands of commercial tahini. To this end, the proximate composition and the fatty acid and sterol profiles were determined. Moreover, the atherogenicity index (AI) and thrombogenicity index (TI) were also assessed. The elemental composition was screened, and the uptake percentage of each element was evaluated. The percentages of saturated (SFAs), mono- (MUFAs), and poly- (PUFAs) fatty acids fell within the following ranges, respectively: 15.44–17.14%, 37.93–43.36%, and 38.51–45.14%. The order of abundance of macro-elements for most samples was P > K > Ca > Mg > Na. Significant concentrations of essential trace elements were found in the tahini samples, including Zn, Fe, Mn, Cu and Se. As regards toxic elements, only one brand appears to exceed the maximum limits for Cd and Pb specified in the European Regulation. However, a low intake of most inorganic elements was obtained from the consumption of 1 g of tahini per day.