Buckwheat as a Functional Food and Its Effects on Health

The family Polygonaceae is a group of plants that includes about 1,200 species. Buckwheat (BW), which belongs to this family, is found almost everywhere but grows mainly in the northern hemisphere. BWE Fortified non-baked products (tea, honey, tarhana and sprouts). Since BW is a gluten-free pseudobulb, these products can be included in a gluten-free diet for patients with gluten intolerance.

BW is recognized as a good source of nutritional value proteins, lipids, fiber and minerals, and combined with other health-promoting ingredients, such as phenolics and sterols, it is receiving increasing attention as a potential functional food. Functional foods are foods with specific, scientifically proven uses. (health claims) in addition to their nutritional properties, although consumption of its specific formulation is not essential to human life. Consumption of BW and BW rich products has been described as being associated with many healthy and biological activities: Lower cholesterol, lower blood sugar, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory .

Antioxidant activity: The growing appreciation for the nutritional and functional properties of BW has also encouraged some research on its antioxidant properties. The antioxidant properties of BW pseudocereals are reflected in the human body intervention research. An increase in the total antioxidant capacity of plasma samples from healthy donors was reported after consuming 1.5 g of honey BW kg−1 (single dose, n=37)49 or when BW honey was added to water or black tea (160 g honey L− 1, n = 25) as well as after consumption of enriched wheat bread according to body weight.

Hypocholesterolemic activity: Increased cholesterol can cause oxidative stress and increase blood cholesterol levels, leading to up-regulation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and oxidized LDL (oxLDL), thereby contributing to obesity development of chronic diseases such as atherosclerosis. In vitro and in vivo studies have suggested that the protective effect of BW against cardiovascular disease may come from its ability to regulate cholesterol (Ch) levels. The number of studies investigating the cholesterol-lowering activity of BW in humans is limited. The survey was conducted by Zhang et al. 2007 is one of the largest studies regarding BW consumption and health: 3,542 Mongols from two neighboring counties of Inner Mongolia (China) were randomly sampled in a cross-sectional study to evaluate the association between hypertension, dyslipidemia, and hyperglycemia with diarrhea. consume BW seeds as staple food in life.

Anti-diabetic activity: Diabetes is a chronic disease caused by insulin deficiency or ineffective insulin action, resulting in increased plasma glucose levels. In recent years, the possibility of improving diabetes control by modulating the glycemic impact of carbohydrate intake has attracted considerable interest. A low glycemic index (GI) diet has been associated with benefits in the prevention and treatment of diabetes. Body weight to use in the diet as a way to prevent diabetes in China. In the study by Skrabanja et al., 10 healthy volunteers consumed(single dose) boiled BW cereal, bread enriched with 50% BW or white bread. Post-clinical plasma glucose and insulin production in volunteers consuming BW products, especially BW cereals, was lower than in those consuming BW products ate white bread. Anti-cancer activity: Cancer is the leading cause of death in economically developed countries and the second leading cause of death in developing countries. Functional foods prevent chronic diseases such as cancer which is one of the leading causes of death major global challenges of this century. In the study of Shen et al. (2008) in Xuan Mai (China), regular consumption of various foods, including BW, is associated with a reduced risk of lung cancer. Since oxidative DNA damage is implicated in cancer initiation and promotion, the antitumor activity of BW was improved related to its antioxidant properties. Ethanol BW extracted from tartarus and common BW have been reported to protect DNA from hydroxyl radical damage. Methanolic extracts of common BWF and BWF tartar, rutin and quercetin showed high antioxidant capacity (DPPH scavenging activity) and reduced tert-butyl hydroperoxide-induced DNA damage in the HepG2 cell line.

Anti-inflammatory activity: Inflammation is a normal biological process in response to tissue damage, bacterial pathogens, and chemical irritation.85 Since chronic inflammation is a well-documented cancer-promoting risk, it should be eliminated or preventing chronic inflammation has been suggested as a primary way to prevent cancer.