# Antioxidant and Antiglycation Properties of Seventeen Fruit Teas Obtained from One Manufacturer
## 4 Discussion
The composition of fruit teas is not limited to one raw ingredient. The presence of particular ingredients in tea blends is determined, on the one hand, by the price of the raw material, and on the other hand, by the sensory properties responsible for the flavor, aroma, and color of the obtained infusions [2; 27]. The most common ingredients of fruit teas are hibiscus flower and fruits of chokeberry, black current, rosehip, and raspberry [47]. Although they mainly determine the color and taste of the infusions, these raw materials are a rich source of both organic acids (citric, malic, tartaric, and oxalic) and also anthocyanins and polyphenolic compounds such as protocatechuic acid [48; 49]. Therefore, they may be responsible for the antioxidant properties of fruit teas. However, despite numerous studies on the antioxidant properties of green, black, and red teas, still little is known about teas made from dried fruit. [PERSON] et al. [3] have shown that the antioxidant activity of studied teas increases in the following order; fruit tea, flavored black tea, and premium black tea. Indeed, the antioxidant properties of a particular infusion are strongly influenced by the percentage of individual raw materials in the mass of the entire product, which translates into a different content of biologically active compounds. In our study, the highest antioxidant activity (highest TAC, DPPH, and TPC) was found in the mixture of lemon balm and pear. In this product, 50% of the dry matter is constituted by the lemon balm herb, which is basically an oil-bearing raw material. However, apart from the essential oil, this raw material also has other biologically active compounds, mainly phenolic acids: rosemarinic, caffeic, chlorogenic, and ferulic acids, which are both esters and glycosides. This raw material also contains triterpene acids, flavonoids, and minerals [50]. On the other hand, pear fruit has a high content of vitamin C, anthocyanins, and other antioxidants, which may affect health-promoting properties of the tea made from this material [51; 52]. Indeed, it is believed that the main source of antioxidants are fruits, among which berries are particularly rich in anthocyanins and tannins [53]. Unfortunately, the available literature lacks data on the total antioxidant potential of the raw material. In our study, infusions of forest fruits, cranberry with pomegranate, raspberry and raspberry with linden also showed high antioxidant activity. Indeed, many studies have shown that these raw materials are rich sources of flavonoids (mainly quercetin, kaempfer, and acacetin derivatives) as well as essential oil [16; 53; 54; 55]. Interestingly, linden, apart from flavonoids (rutin, hyperoside, quercetin, astragalin, and thiroside) and essential oil, also contains mucous compounds, amino acids or tocopherol, which also determines antioxidant properties [56; 57]. The addition of these ingredients may intensify the antiradical effect in comparison to tea with raspberry alone. [PERSON] et al. [16] demonstrated that pomegranate fruit has the highest antioxidant capacity among the evaluated fruit teas. In our study, the cranberry with pomegranate tea also reached high values of TAC, DPPH, FRAP, and TPC, while the cranberry infusion was already characterized by low antioxidant activity. It can therefore be assumed that it is the pomegranate fruit that is responsible for the health benefits of the cranberry-pomegranate tea. [PERSON] et al. [16] also showed a significant antioxidant capacity of berry teas (blueberry and blackberry), which was also covered by our study. We showed that forest fruit tea is one of the five teas with the best antioxidant properties. An important part of our study was also the assessment of the effect of fruit tea extracts on the glyco oxidative properties of albumin. Albumin is one of the best-known proteins of the human body involved in the maintenance of oncotic pressure, regulation of the acid-base and oxidative-antioxidative balance as well as transport of many endogenous and exogenous substances [58].