FINGER MILLET-“INTRODUCTION, HEALTH BENEFITS & DISEASES.”

INTRODUCTION

Eleusine coracana, or finger millet, also known as kodo in Nepal and ragi in India, is an annual herbaceous plant widely grown as a cereal crop in the arid and semiarid areas in Africa and Asia. It is an important major millet crop of Nepal. It is a staple food in many hilly regions of the country and is grown upto an altitude of 2100-2200 meters above the sea level. It is grown both as grain and forage.

Millets are important but underutilized crops in tropical and semiarid regions of the world due to their greater resistance to pests and diseases, good adaption to a wide range of environment and their good yield of production, can withstand significant levels of salinity, short growing season, resistant to water logging, drought tolerant, requires little inputs during growth and with increasing world population and decreasing water supplies represents important crops for future human use. The drought tolerance of finger millet may be attributed to an efficient antioxidant potential and increased signal perception. Being as hardy crop it is relatively easy to grow finger millet under stressful regimes, without hampering the net productivity. It is very nutritive food crop containing high amount of carbohydrate (76.32%), protein (9.2%), fat (1.29%), minerals (2.24%), ash (3.9%) and calcium (0.33%) along with smaller quantities of vitamin A, B, and phosphorus. Its grains are eaten in the form of Dhindo and Roti and the germinated grains are malted and fed to infant.

It is also considered a helpful famine crop as it is easily stored for lean years. The grain is readily digestible, highly nutritious and versatile, and can be cooked like rice, ground to make porridge or flour, or used to make cakes. Finger millet is also used to make liquor and beer, which yields by-products used for livestock feeding.

HEALTH BENEFITS

The vitamins, minerals, and fiber found in finger millet can provide important health benefits. The potassium found in finger millet can help keep your kidneys and heart functioning properly. Potassium also helps your nerves transmit signals, which allows your brain and your muscles to work together smoothly.

Finger millet is also an excellent source of vitamin B, which plays an important role in everything from brain function to healthy cell division. B vitamins are even connected to a reduction in fatigue.

In addition, finger millet can provide other health benefits like:

Heart Health

Whole grains like finger millet are connected to lower risk of heart disease. Finger millet is full of dietary fiber, which helps to control the bad cholesterol that can contribute to heart diseases like atherosclerosis. Soluble fiber absorbs cholesterol before it enters your bloodstream, maintaining a lower cholesterol level without medication. Millet has also been shown to raise good cholesterol levels and lower triglycerides, which are a kind of fat found in your blood. Cholesterol levels are one of the biggest risk factors for heart disease, so eating millet regularly may help keep your heart healthier.

Reverts Skin Ageing

Finger millet helps for maintaining young and youthful skin. Vital amino acids like Methionine and Lysine present in it make the skin tissues less prone to wrinkles and sagging.

Digestive Health

The fiber in finger millet can also help support digestive health. Insoluble dietary fiber is “prebiotic,” means it helps support the good bacteria in your gut. Eating prebiotics like the fiber in millet can support gut health by keeping your digestive flora healthy. Eating enough fiber has also been linked to a decreased risk of colon cancer.

Battles Anemia

Ragi is an excellent source of natural iron and thus a boon for anemic patients and also for those with low haemoglobin levels. Once ragi is allowed to sprout, the Vitamin C levels tend to increase and lead to easy absorption of iron into the bloodstream.

Anti-cancer potential

Finger millet is also rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants prevent excessive oxidation, which could otherwise cause cancer and ageing because of cell damage. Phenolic acids, flavonoids and tannins present in finger millet seed coats have very effective antioxidant properties. In general, it has been shown that people on millet-based diets have lower frequencies of esophageal cancer than those on wheat or maize-diets.

Relaxes the Body

Regular consumption of Ragi is highly beneficial in dealing with conditions of anxiety, depression insomnia. The presence of antioxidants, mainly Tryptophan and amino acids, helps as they work as natural relaxants.

Diabetes Control

Finger millet has a low glycemic index. That means that it has lower levels of simple sugars and higher levels of complex carbohydrates, which take a longer time to digest. Foods with a low glycemic index can help prevent your blood glucose level from spiking after a meal. As a result, eating millet instead of high glycemic index foods like white wheat flour can help people living with diabetes manage their blood sugar levels.

Helps in Weight Loss

The high amount of dietary fibre combine keeps the stomach full for a longer and prevents unwanted cravings. This in turn leads to a minimized appetite and weight loss. Ragi flour lowers blood sugar levels in the body by activating insulin.

So, finger millet is an extremely nutritious cereal and is very beneficial for maintaining a good health. Therefore, it has received attention for their potential role as functional foods. However, its high intake could increase quantity oxalic acid in the body. Therefore, it is not advised to patients having kidney stones. Finger millet could be enjoyed in different forms and preparations like roti, dosa, cakes, and biscuits are few popular dishes of finger millet.

COMMON DISEASES

Symptoms

Elliptical or diamond shaped lesions on leaves; centers of lesions are grey and water-soaked; appearance of concentric rings on leaves.

Management

Plant resistant varieties where available; treat seeds with appropriate fungicide; sprays of appropriate fungicides may also be required to control the disease in the field; good sanitary practices are essential to limit the spread of the disease.

Symptoms

Small dark lesions on leaves which are usually oval in shape but may be oblong to rectangular; centers of lesions are gray to tan in color with visible black dots; lesions may be covered in spores during wet weather; lesions may also be present on the stems and are slightly longer than those on the leaves.

Management

Avoid planting millet varieties that are highly susceptible to Cercospora fungi; control weeds in field; rotate crops and practice good sanitation; no chemical control is needed to treat the disease.

Symptoms

Chlorosis of leaves beginning at base of the infected leaf beginning lower down on the plant and progressing upwards; downy white to gray fungal growth on undersides of leaves; brown, necrotic leaves; distinct margin between diseased leaf tissue at base of leaf and healthy tissue towards tip.

Management

Rogue infected plants when found in the field; treat seeds with an appropriate systemic fungicide prior to planting and continue to spray the crop at least once every 25 days after sowing.

Symptoms

Small yellow or white raised spots on upper and lower leaf surfaces; spots tend to be more numerous on lower leaf surface; spots enlarge and develop into red-brown pustules which may be surrounded by a yellow halo.

Management

Plant resistant varieties of millet if rust is a persistent problem; avoid the use of overhead irrigation; do now plant millet in close proximity to eggplant or other Solanaceous crops.

Symptoms

Death of seedlings before they breach soil surface; light brown, oval lesions on seedlings; large dark brown patches on seedlings; withering of plants; well defined lesions on junction between leaf blade and sheath; tissue necrosis; death of plant above lesions; dropping of leaf tips, spikelets, fingers or entire head.

The disease is primarily seed borne; seed treatment with Agrosan G.N. can give complete control of pre-emergence damping off seedling blight. Secondary infection can be reduced by spraying of Mancozeb at the rate 0.2 per cent control the disease.

CONCLUSION
Overall it may be said that, the finger millet’s dietary fiber and polyphenols have been recognized to offer several health benefits such as anti-diabetic, protection from diet related chronic diseases, hypocholesterolaemic, antioxidant, and antimicrobial effects to its regular consumers. The regular use of finger millet as a nutrient and its products helps in managing different disorders of body by maintaining blood glucose homeostasis. Hence, it should be included in our diet for the healthy life. Also, effective disease management strategies are crucial for sustaining the production of high-quality crops, as well as reducing the environmental impacts attributable to pathogens and their management measures.

Writer: Sweksha Ghimire (Student, Bsc. Ag IAAS Paklihawa Campus)