Effects of grain source and processing methods on the nutritional profile and digestibility of grain amaranth

Grundy, M. M. L., Momanyi, D. K., Holland, C., Kawaka, F., Tan, S., Salim, M., Boyd, B. J., Bajka, B., Mulet-Cabero, A.-I., Bishop, J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2114-230X and Owino, W. O. (2020) Effects of grain source and processing methods on the nutritional profile and digestibility of grain amaranth. Journal of Functional Foods, 72. 104065. ISSN 1756-4646 doi: 10.1016/j.jff.2020.104065

Abstract/Summary

Amaranth grain is reputed to have a high nutritional value, and as a plant, be tolerant to adverse weather conditions. This suggests that grain amaranth could be useful in tackling malnutrition and the growing burden of cardiometabolic diseases. However, there is insufficient knowledge at present about how the nutrient composition and digestibility of amaranth grain varies with growing environment, crop genotype, and post-harvest processing. We investigated the effect of the source and processing of amaranth grains on the digestibility of protein and lipid present in the grains. There was variation in the composition and digestibility of raw grains from different sources, indicating a role of genotype and/or growing environment which warrants further investigation. The greatest differences in digestibility were measured between the different processing techniques. This indicates that efforts to increase the cultivation and consumption of grain amaranth need to be supported by education about effective processing and preparation techniques.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/91254
Identification Number/DOI	10.1016/j.jff.2020.104065
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Agriculture, Policy and Development > Department of Animal Sciences > Animal, Dairy and Food Chain Sciences (ADFCS)- DO NOT USE Interdisciplinary centres and themes > Chemical Analysis Facility (CAF) > Optical Spectroscopy (CAF)
Publisher	Elsevier
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