Ancient Wheats-A Nutritional and Sensory Analysis Review

Use of ancient grains for the management of diabetes mellitus: A systematic review and meta-analysis

AIMS

A systematic review and meta-analysis of published randomized controlled trials was conducted to collate evidence from studies implementing ancient grains and investigate the impact of ancient grain consumption on health outcomes of patients with Diabetes Mellitus (DM).

DATA SYNTHESIS

Twenty-nine randomized controlled trials were included, and 13 were meta-analyzed. Interventions ranged from 1 day to 24 weeks; most samples were affected by DM type 2 (n = 28 studies) and the ancient grains used were oats (n = 10 studies), brown rice (n = 6 studies), buckwheat (n = 4 studies), chia (n = 3 studies), Job's Tears (n = 2 studies), and barley, Khorasan and millet (n = 1 study). Thirteen studies that used oats, brown rice, and chia provided data for a quantitative synthesis. Four studies using oats showed a small to moderate beneficial effect on health outcomes including LDL-c (n = 717, MD: 0.30 mmol/l, 95% CI: 0.42 to -0.17, Z = 4.61, p < 0.05, I2 = 0%), and TC (n = 717, MD: 0.44 mmol/l, 95% CI: 0.63 to -0.24, Z = 4.40, p < 0.05, I2 = 0%). Pooled analyses of studies using chia and millet did not show significant effects on selected outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS

For adults affected by DM type 2, the use of oats may improve lipidic profile. Further experimental designs are needed in interventional research to better understand the effects of ancient grains on diabetes health outcomes.

PROSPERO REGISTRATION

CRD42023422386.

Characterization of Triticum turgidum sspp. durum, turanicum, and polonicum grown in Central Italy in relation to technological and nutritional aspects

Introduction

Wheat is a staple food, with the two most common species being Triticum aestivum and Triticum turgidum ssp. durum. Moreover, the latter, T. turgidum, includes other tetraploid subspecies, among which the sspp. turanicum (Khorasan wheat) and polonicum (Polish wheat), whose importance has increased in the last decades, representing alternative crops for marginal areas, in addition to being a source of genetic diversity.

Methods

In this work, different accessions of these three subspecies of T. turgidum have been grown in 2 years in the same environment and have been characterized for technological properties and factors affecting nutritional quality, such as fiber amount and the content of micro- and macro-nutrients in grains, and for root morphological traits.

Results

These analyses allowed the identification, in particular, of a Polish wheat accession showing better technological performances, a higher amount of positive micro- and macro-elements, and a lower amount of toxic cadmium. The modern variety Svevo and the Polish Pol2 showed the lowest and the highest shoot:root ratio, respectively. The high shoot:root ratio in Pol2 was mainly attributable to the decrease in root growth. Although Pol2 had a lower root biomass, its particular root morphology made it more efficient for nutrient uptake, as evident from the greater accumulation of micro- and macro-nutrients.

Discussion

These results underline that it is not possible to draw general conclusions about the difference between primitive and modern wheats, but rather a case-by-case approach should be chosen.