A REVIEW ON NUTRITIONAL AND HEALTH BENEFITS OF MILLETS

Millets are traditional grains, grown and consumed in the Indian subcontinent from the past more than 5000 years. Millets are small - grained, annual, warm - weather cereals belonging to grass family. They are rain - fed, hardy grains which have low requirements of water and fertility when compared to other popular cereals. They are highly tolerant to drought and other extreme weather conditions.Millets are nutri cereals comprising of sorgum, pearl millet, finger millet (Major millets) foxtail, little, kodo, proso and barnyard millet (minor millets). These are one of thge oldest foods known to humanity. These are one of the several species of coarse cereal grasses in the family poaceae, cultivated for their small edible seeds. Pseudo millets are so called because they are not part of the Poaceae botanical family, to which 'true' grains belong, however they are nutritionally similar and used in similar ways to 'true' grains.Millets are highly nutritious, non glutinous and non acid forming foods. Millets have many nutraceutical and health promoting properties especially the high fibre content. Millets act as a probiotic feeding for micro - flora in our inner ecosystem. Millets hydrate our colon to keep us from being constipated. Niacin in millet can help lower cholesterol. Millets contain major and minor nutrients in good amount along with dietary fibre. Millets are gluten free and can be a substitute for wheat or gluten containing grains for celiac patientsMillets are resilient to climate change as they are adapted to a wide range of temperatures, and moisture regimes, and demand less input to grow. They are hardy crops that have low carbon & water footprints[1,2]. It can sustain drought and even 350-400 mm of rainfall is sufficient for millets. Millets grow faster, putting less stress on the environment .In rice production, temperature increases are predicted to reduce rice yields. So, there is a need to consider adaptive measures to cope with changing agricultural patterns. Due to climate change, there is a decline in yield leading to food insecurity, more attacks of pests and diseases, soil degradation, change in crop schedules, and desertification[3]. Considering, millets as an alternative crop is a better choice and we can say it is the future crop