Significant Health Potential of Cereal Grains to Encounter Hyperglycaemia: A Review

Over the last few decades life style modifications have after effect in drastic increase in the incidence of diabetes all over the world. Oral antidiabetic drugs and insulin form the main stay in controlling diabetes but they have predominant side effects and fail to significantly alter or reduce the complications of diabetics. Appropriate diet and exercise programmes which form a part of lifestyle changes have proven to be greatly effective in the management of this disease. Transitions in dietary intake are showing a bright future in the control, prevention and treatment of diabetes. Cereal grains which form the staple diet for humans in most of the countries are increasingly being used to control hyperglycaemia in diabetes and other associated disorders in view of their antidiabetic potential. Given this background, this paper reviews the possible mechanisms of lowering blood sugar levels possessed by various commonly consumed cereal grains.