why do people eat millets in deserts and dry regions?
Answers
Answer:
Millets are coarse grains and a repository of protein, fibre, vitamins and minerals. They include jowar (sorghum), ragi (finger millet), korra (foxtail millet), arke (kodo millet), sama (little millet), bajra (pearl millet), chena/barr (proso millet) and sanwa (barnyard millet).
The practice of consuming millets as part of the daily diet is not new to India. “Millets had been the major staple food in central India, southern India and hilly regions of Uttarakhand for centuries till the time of the Green Revolution. After the advent of high-yielding varieties of rice and wheat during the 1970s, millets got sidelined from our food basket," says Vilas A. Tonapi, director of the Indian Institute of Millets Research in Hyderabad. The reason for this is lack of awareness about the nutritional benefits, the not-so-sumptuous taste and the tag of “a poor man’s food". “Also, government pushed only rice and wheat in the subsidized public distribution system, rendering the cultivation of millets uneconomical," he says.
In your backyard
Consequently, this resulted in high consumption of polished rice and refined wheat flour, which happen to be the main ingredients of foods consumed by the urban population. This trend, coupled with sedentary lifestyles, has led to a rise in obesity and other lifestyle diseases like diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, across age groups, says Divya Choudhary, chief dietitian at the Max Super Speciality Hospital in Delhi. A study published earlier this month in The New England Journal Of Medicine says India has the world’s highest number of obese children (14.4 million) after China (15.3 million). Globally, it found that over two billion children and adults suffer from health problems related to being overweight or obese. In such a scenario, gluten-free millets could prove to be an effective weapon, believes nutritionist Shubi Husain, founder and managing director, Health Sanctuary, a healthcare chain of clinics in Delhi-NCR and north India.
“Children learn from their parents. If we eat healthy, they will also learn to eat healthy. Millets were part of our grandparents’ diet, it’s only in the past few decades that their consumption has reduced. We need to embrace the goodness of millets: Their high-fibre content helps in bowel movement and manages diabetes and obesity. Their high magnesium level is good for lowering blood pressure, while the potassium content keeps hypertension at bay," says Husain (see “How They Stack Up").
Ragi is undoubtedly a powerhouse of nutrition. Loaded with protein and amino acids, this gluten free millet is good for brain development in growing kids. Foxtail millet has healthy blood sugar balancing carbohydrates, and it is popularly available in the form of semolina and rice flour.