In the 21st century, climate changes, water scarcity, increasing world population, rising food prices, and other socioeconomic impacts are expected to generate a great threat to agriculture and food security worldwide, especially for the poorest people who live in arid and subarid regions. These impacts present a challenge to scientists and nutritionists to investigate the possibilities of producing, processing, and utilizing other potential food sources to end hunger and poverty. Cereal grains are the most important source of the world's food and have a significant role in the human diet throughout the world. As one of the most important drought-resistant crops, millet is widely grown in the semiarid tropics of Africa and Asia and constitutes a major source of carbohydrates and proteins for people living in these areas. In addition, because of their important contribution to national food security and potential health benefits, millet grain is now receiving increasing interest from food scientists, technologists, and nutritionists. The aim of this work was to review the recent advances in research carried out to date for purposes of evaluation of nutritional quality and potential health benefits of millet grains. Processing technologies used for improving the edible and nutritional characteristics of millet as well as challenges, limitations, and future perspectives to promote millet utilization as food for a large and growing population are also discussed.

Millet Grains: Nutritional Quality, Processing, and Potential Health Benefits

The growing public awareness of nutrition and health care research substantiates the potential of phytochemicals such as polyphenols and dietary fiber on their health beneficial properties. Hence, there is in need to identify newer sources of neutraceuticals and other natural and nutritional materials with the desirable functional characteristics. Finger millet (Eleusine coracana), one of the minor cereals, is known for several health benefits and some of the health benefits are attributed to its polyphenol and dietary fiber contents. It is an important staple food in India for people of low income groups. Nutritionally, its importance is well recognised because of its high content of calcium (0.38%), dietary fiber (18%) and phenolic compounds (0.3–3%). They are also recognized for their health beneficial effects, such as anti-diabetic, anti-tumerogenic, atherosclerogenic effects, antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. This review deals with the nature of polyphenols and dietary fiber of finger millet and their role with respect to the health benefits associated with millet.

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Health benefits of finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) polyphenols and dietary fiber: a review

Composition and enzyme inhibitory properties of finger millet (Eleusine coracana L.) seed coat phenolics: Mode of inhibition of α-glucosidase and pancreatic amylase

p-Coumaric acid (4-hydroxycinnamic acid) is a phenolic acid that has low toxicity in mice (LD50 = 2850 mg kg(-1) body weight), serves as a precursor of other phenolic compounds, and exists either in free or conjugated form in plants. Conjugates of p-coumaric acid have been extensively studied in recent years due to their bioactivities. In this review, the occurrence, bioavailability and bioaccessibility of p-coumaric acid and its conjugates with mono-, oligo- and polysaccharides, alkyl alcohols, organic acids, amine and lignin are discussed. Their biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-cancer, antimicrobial, antivirus, anti-inflammatory, antiplatelet aggregation, anxiolytic, antipyretic, analgesic, and anti-arthritis activities, and their mitigatory effects against diabetes, obesity, hyperlipaemia and gout are compared. Cumulative evidence from multiple studies indicates that conjugation of p-coumaric acid greatly strengthens its biological activities; however, the high biological activity but low absorption of its conjugates remains a puzzle. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

p‐Coumaric acid and its conjugates: dietary sources, pharmacokinetic properties and biological activities

The non-covalent interactions between starch and phenolic compounds may impact on the physicochemical and nutritional properties of food. Starch and phenolic compound interact to form either inclusion complex in the form of amylose single helices facilitated by hydrophobic effect, or complex with much weaker binding most through hydrogen bonds. The outcome of the interactions and their impact on the food properties appear to be dependent on the type and structure of both phenolic compound and starch as well as the method of preparing the complex. This review summarises the current knowledge of the influence of the interactions on the physicochemical properties and digestion of starch system, the bioavailability of phenolic compound, and the non-covalent nature of starch-phenolic compound interactions. Plant extracts rich in phenolic compounds as well as purified phenolic compounds are included. Research opportunities to better understand and utilize these interactions for food applications are suggested.

S. Chethan

Papers

Finger millet polyphenols: Optimization of extraction and the effect of pH on their stability

Inhibition of aldose reductase from cataracted eye lenses by finger millet (Eleusine coracana) polyphenols.

Finger Millet Polyphenols: Characterization and their Nutraceutical Potential.

Mode of inhibition of finger millet malt amylases by the millet phenolics