Why you should include millets in your daily diet

Rich in Dietary Fibre

Applicable for Parry’s Kodo Millet, Barnyard Millet and Little Millet 

1. Important in Diabetes management: 

  • It generally is accepted that a diet high in fibre, particularly soluble fibre, is useful in the management of the plasma glucose concentration in individuals with diabetes.
  • Higher-fibre diets are an important component of diabetes management, resulting in improvements in measures of glycaemic control, blood lipids, body weight, and inflammation, as well as a reduction in premature mortality.
  • Increasing daily fibre intake by 15 g might be a reasonable target that would be expected to reduce risk of premature mortality in adults with diabetes.
  • Dietary fiber promotes fecal SCFAs, particularly butyrate, which was followed by improvements in glucose homeostasis.

2. Supports Gut health:

  • It has been demonstrated that dietary fibers significantly affect the gut microbiota’s functionality and composition, which has positive implications on health due to their structural, physical, and chemical properties such as viscosity, water binding and bulking ability, and fermentability
  • High-fiber diets benefit the host’s health by influencing glucose and cholesterol metabolism, among other things
  • Short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), which are produced by large bowel bacteria from the fermentation of fiber and protein, are some of the most prevalent and physiologically significant products. Colorectal tissues and bacteria rely on SCFA for energy, as they are essential for the proper functioning of cellular mechanisms that ensure tissue integrity
  • SCFA can enter the blood and influence immunological function and inflammation in the lungs and other tissues

3. Dietary Fibre increases satiety and helps weight management:

  • Supplementing viscous fibre influences body weight, body-mass index (BMI), and waist circumference. A proposed mechanism of the benefit of fibre on weight control is the suppression of appetite and increased satiety.
  • Likely, as foods high in fibre are bulky and require more chewing, this results in feeling fuller and subsequently reduces energy intake, which may improve body composition.
  • Dietary fiber promotes fecal SCFAs, particularly butyrate, which was followed by improvements in glucose homeostasis (36). It is the principal source of energy for colonic epithelial cells to sustain their growth and integrity (37). Butyrate contributes to host health through having anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties that provide benefits (38) and prevent diseases such as colorectal cancer (39, 40), diabetes, and obesity

4. Decreased urge for snacking in-between: 

  • Foods high in fibre are bulky and require more chewing, this results in feeling fuller and subsequently reduces energy intake, which may improve body composition.

Source of Iron

Applicable for Parry’s Foxtail Millet 

1. Supports Prevention of Anemia

“Anemia” is described as a group of conditions that result from an inability of erythropoietin tissues to maintain normal hemoglobin concentration on an account of inadequate supply of one or more nutrients leading to a reduction in the total circulating hemoglobin. It can occur due to poor vegetarian diet, malabsorption of iron, hookworm infections, excessive blood loss, menstruation and childbirth. The adverse effects of anemia include low birth weight, reduced immune-competence, poor cognitive development, behavioral complications, reduced work capacity, and maternal mortality.

Nutrition intervention strategies that include a long-term focus on balanced nutrition, i.e. dietary diversification, shortterm supplementation, medium-term fortification of staple foods with bioavailable iron and nutrition education, are the best tool to combat iron deficiency anemia.

2. Helps Maintain Healthy Skin and Hair

 Iron exhibits a fundamental importance as a trace metal in the normal growth and functional maturation of the skin and in the health of hair and nails.

 Severe iron deficiency, as seen in anaemic patients, is recognized by a general fatigue, eczema in the corners of the mouth, skin irritation, nail deformities, hair loss and ‘skin itch’ (pruritis). Loss of skin ‘tone’, reduced resistance to infections, and impaired wound healing are also associated with iron deficiency.

Chronic anaemia or iron deficiency is a cause of diffuse or nondescript hair loss, premature greying of the hair and hair bulb atrophy.

Nail differs from hair in being composed of hard keratin. It is a sensitive indicator of mineral deficiency, particularly for zinc, iron, magnesium, manganese and calcium. Leuconychia (white nail), koilonychia (nail fattening with a ‘spoon’-shaped appearance), brittle nail, vertical ridging (Beau’s lines), inflammation of the nail plate and reduced growth are associated with iron deficiency.

3. Supports immunity development

Iron is an essential micronutrient for virtually all living cells. In infectious diseases, both invading pathogens and mammalian cells including those of the immune system require iron to sustain their function, metabolism and proliferation. The sequestration of iron from bacteria and other microorganisms is an efficient strategy of host defense in line with the principles of ‘nutritional immunity’. In an acute infection, host-driven iron withdrawal inhibits the growth of pathogens.

4. Helps Boost Stamina

Iron is an essential nutrient for the functioning of the various biochemical process including regulation of cell growth, immune function and neuro transmitter system function. Iron and other nutritional deficiencies can result in haemoglobin abnormalities causing decreased red blood cell production.  A lack of iron can strongly affect physical work capacity by reducing oxygen transport to muscles. Therefore, the recommended iron needs are higher in physically active individuals 

Source of Protein 

Applicable for Parry’s Foxtail Millet

100g of Foxtail Millet Provides Protein equivalent to that of;

  1. 2 eggs
  2. 60 g of paneer
  3. 64g of almonds

 

1. Gives Satiety and help in weight management: 

  • A modest increase in protein, at the expense of the other macronutrients, may promote satiety and facilitate weight loss through reduced energy consumption.
  • Several studies have suggested that higher protein diets may increase total weight loss and increase the percentage of fat loss.
  • Protein has the potential to play a key role in several aspects of body weight regulation. The mechanisms by which increased dietary protein regulate body weight are multifactorial.
  • However, taken together, evidence suggests that a moderate increase in dietary protein in association with physical activity and an energy-controlled diet may improve the regulation of body weight by reducing the energy efficiency with respect to the body mass regained and increasing satiety.

References

  1. Reynolds AN, Akerman AP, Mann J (2020) Dietary fibre and whole grains in diabetes management: Systematic review and metaanalyses. PLoS Med 17(3): e1003053. https://doi. org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1003053)
  2. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2024.1324793/full
  3. (Akhlaghi M. The role of dietary fibers in regulating appetite, an overview of mechanisms and weight consequences. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2024;64(10):3139-3150 doi: 10.1080/10408398.2022.2130160)
  4. (Clark, M. J., & Slavin, J. L. (2013). The Effect of Fiber on Satiety and Food Intake: A Systematic Review. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 32(3), 200–211.doi:10.1080/07315724.2013.791194)
  5. JL, Slavin & Green, H.. (2007). Dietary fibre and satiety. Nutrition Bulletin. 32. 32 – 42. 10.1111/j.1467-3010.2007.00603.x.
  6. Borkoles E, Krastins D, van der Pols JC, Sims P, Polman R. Short-Term Effect of Additional Daily Dietary Fibre Intake on Appetite, Satiety, Gastrointestinal Comfort, Acceptability, and Feasibility. Nutrients. 2022 Oct 10;14(19):4214. doi: 10.3390/nu14194214)
  7. Kaur, S. (2016). Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA ): A Review. International Journal of Science and Research, 5(4), 1999–2003.
  8. Victor R Preedy. Handbook of diet, nutrition and skin.
  9. Haschka, D., Hoffmann, A. & Weiss, G. Iron in immune cell function and host defense.  Cell Dev. Biol.115, 27–36 (2021).
  10. Nairz M, Weiss G. Iron in infection and immunity. Mol Aspects Med. 2020 Oct; 75:100864. doi: 10.1016/j.mam.2020.100864. Epub 2020 May 24. PMID: 32461004.
  11. Mahendra P. Kapoor, Masaaki Sugita, Mikiko Kawaguchi, Derek Timm, Aki Kawamura, Aya Abe, Tsutomu Okubo.
  12. Influence of iron supplementation on fatigue, mood states and sweating profiles of healthy non-anemic athletes during a training exercise: A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study, Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications, Volume 32,2023,101084,ISSN 2451-8654,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conctc.2023.101084
  13. Borkoles, E.; Krastins, D.; van der Pols, J.C.; Sims, P.; Polman, R. Short-Term Effect of Additional Daily Dietary Fibre Intake on Appetite, Satiety, Gastrointestinal Comfort, Acceptability, and Feasibility. Nutrients 2022, 14, 4214. https://doi.org/10.3390/ nu14194214
  14. B.G. Lansdown Iron: a cosmetic constituent but an essential nutrient for healthy skin Int. J. Cosmet. Sci, 23 (2001), pp. 129-137, 10.1046/j.1467-2494.2001.00082.
  15. (Paddon-Jones, D., Westman, E., Mattes, R. D., Wolfe, R. R., Astrup, A., & Westerterp-Plantenga, M. (2008). Protein, weight management, and satiety. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 87(5), 1558S–1561S.doi:10.1093/ajcn/87.5.1558s)