New Delhi: Taller, healthier and stronger: Millet can boost growth in children and adolescents by 26 to 39 percent when it replaces rice in standard meals, an India-led study has found.
The study, led by Dr. S. Anitha, Senior Scientist, Nutrition, at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in Patancheru, near Hyderabad, is a review and analysis of eight previously published studies, all of them made in India.
It was published In the diary nutrients earlier this month.
Participants in the studies analyzed included infants as well as preschool and school-age children and adolescents. The children ate nutrient- and protein-rich millet for a period of three months to four and a half years.
Five of those studies used finger millet (ragi), one used sorghum (jowar), and two used a mixture of millet, particularly finger, pearl (bajra), foxtail (kangni), little (kutki), and kodo (varagu) millet. ). Each of the studies had an average sample size of 65.
Among children fed a millet-based diet, a 28.2 percent relative increase in mean height and 26 percent in weight was seen, compared with children on regular rice-based diets, it found. the revision. Similarly, a 39 percent increase in mid-upper arm circumference and a 37 percent increase in chest circumference were also found among children on millet-based diets compared to the rice-based diet.
In addition, the study found that millet-based diets help control type 2 diabetes, reduce cholesterol levels, combat obesity and anemia.
“These results are attributable to the naturally high nutrient content of millet which exhibits high amounts of growth-promoting nutrients, especially total protein, sulfur-containing amino acids and calcium in the case of finger millet,” Anitha told ThePrint.
“Furthermore, finger millet (ragi) naturally contains high levels of calcium, of which the body typically retains almost 23 percent. Available evidence shows that finger millet calcium is highly bioavailable (available for absorption in the human body), and may provide around 100 mg of bioavailable calcium per 100 grams of grain which could help overcome calcium deficiencies if it is consumed properly,” he added. Anita.
Also read: Read Before You Eat: What Nutrition and Ingredient Labels Tell You About ‘Healthy’ Foods
Recommend millet for various schemes
All of the studies analyzed in the meta-study were based on standard rice-based meals, which were then compared with those based on millet. The researchers also studied meals fortified with vegetables, fruits, and dairy products, and concluded that they resulted in minimal additional growth if eaten with millet instead of rice.
According to the study, this indicates that simply replacing rice with millet, along with more diverse and nutritious foods such as fruits and vegetables, may be beneficial for growing children.
The study also made several policy recommendations, such as the development of nutritional intervention programs to diversify staple foods, such as giving millet in the midday meal plan or the various maternal and child health programs. Another recommendation is to incorporate millet-based meals designed for different age groups.
“Implementing millet-based meals requires menus to be designed for different age groups, using culturally sensitive and tasty recipes. This should also be complemented with awareness and marketing campaigns to generate understanding and interest in millet,” one of the study’s authors, Dr. Hemalatha, director of the Indian National Institute of Nutrition in Hyderabad, told ThePrint.
It also helps in other ways
The study also concluded that millet contains a wide range of nutrients and has been scientifically proven to contribute to important health needs around the world.
Millet not only addresses malnutrition and childhood malnutrition, but also controls type 2 diabetes, lowers total cholesterol levels, and helps fight obesity and iron deficiency, which cause anemia, according to the study.
He concluded that in order to bring the benefits of millet to society at large, awareness of its nutritional value is needed. Only then will demand increase, investment will come and food value chains will be created from farm to fork.
(Edited by Saikat Niyogi)
Also read: National Nutrition Month 2021: The Power of a Nutritious Meal
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