Recently, a friend asked about the nutritional value of millet oil. On this topic, a nutrition expert said that "the land produces what it can, and the land nurtures the people it produces." Foods grown in different regions vary, and millet is no exception. To understand the nutritional value of millet oil, one must first understand the nutritional value of millet itself, which is related to the type and origin of the millet.
Millet can be divided into many types based on the color of its husk, such as yellow, white, and brown. Among these, red and gray millet are mostly glutinous, while white, yellow, brown, and green millet are mostly non-glutinous (japonica). Different types of millet have varying nutritional content.
The nutritional content also differs depending on the place of origin. Millet is widely distributed, radiating from the Yellow River Basin in China to North China, Northeast China, and Inner Mongolia. Among these, four regions are particularly famous for producing millet with significantly higher nutritional content than common millet. These include: Qinzhou Yellow Millet, Jinxian Millet, Longshan Millet, and Taohua Millet.
Take Qinzhou Yellow Millet as an example. It is not only rich in aroma but also has higher nutritional value than common millet. The "China Food Composition Table" shows that 100g of common yellow millet contains the general components as shown in the table above. In comparison, Qinzhou Yellow Millet has a fat content 1.0% to 2.5% higher than that of common yellow millet.
Millet porridge is more fragrant than rice porridge because millet has a higher fat content than rice. Taking the japonica rice we often eat as an example, 100g of premium japonica rice contains 1.2g of fat, whereas 100g of yellow millet contains 3.0g of fat, which is almost three times that of premium japonica rice.
Additionally, the reason millet is yellow is that it contains a natural pigment—carotenoids. The higher the carotenoid content, the deeper the color of the millet. Carotenoids are beneficial to the human body, as they can enhance immune function, inhibit the occurrence and growth of tumors, and have anti-cancer properties.
After discussing millet, let's talk about millet oil. The top layer of millet porridge is the millet oil. Why do we favor it so much? This is because all the fat-soluble nutrients in millet are found here, such as fat, vitamin E, and carotenoids. In contrast, water-soluble nutrients are in the millet soup, such as vitamins B1 and B2.
Millet soup and millet oil can provide the necessary nutrients for lactating mothers and infants. The nutrients needed by lactating mothers include protein, lipids, minerals, and vitamins. Among these, vitamins B1 and E can promote milk secretion. Vitamins B1 and B2 can pass into the breast milk through the mammary glands. An insufficient intake of vitamin B1 can easily lead to beriberi in infants.
For breastfed infants (from birth to 1 year of age), when the maternal diet is sufficient, the nutrients in breast milk can fully meet the growth and development needs of the infant for the first 6 months (except for vitamin D).
When introducing complementary foods to an infant, they should be added gradually from thin to thick, i.e., in stages of liquid, semi-liquid, semi-solid, and solid foods. Millet oil and millet soup are nutrient-rich liquid foods, making them suitable as complementary foods.
Dr. Lü said that millet is not only rich in nutrition but also has certain medicinal value. Millet is yellow in color, which corresponds to the spleen and stomach meridians in traditional Chinese medicine. It also has a slightly salty taste, which corresponds to the kidney meridian. It can strengthen the spleen, harmonize the stomach, and has certain nourishing yin effects, helping to calm the mind and tonify the kidneys.