Nutritional Composition And Benefits Of Gluten Free Finger Millet

The term millet is derived from the French word “mille’’ which means thousand. A fistful of millet containing up to 1000 grains (Shahidi & Chandrasekara, 2013) and hence the name. Millets belong to the group of small-seeded species of cereal crops or grains which are annual plants (Shiihii et al., 2011).

The dietary fiber in Ragi play a key role in controlling and regulating the release of blood sugar .This means that this grain is valuable both in prevention and management of Diabetes Mellitus .Dietary fiber also plays an important role in prevention of cardio-vascular diseases. The World Health Organization defines overweight and obesity as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health. The most common health consequence of being overweight or obese is cardiovascular disease — mainly heart disease and stroke. The more overweight a person is the more likely he/she is to develop heart disease. Increased weight is a determinant of higher levels of triglycerides, elevated LDL (commonly known as bad cholesterol) and low HDL (commonly known as good cholesterol). However, even a slight reduction in weight (5- 10 per cent) can reduce a person’s risk of heart disease. Dietary fibre in whole grains acts as a sponge, absorbing water and thus increasing the “bulk’ of the food . It promotes satiety and as a result one tends to eat less, resulting in weight loss.