Eating well is one of the best moves you can make in keeping healthy, and the food you eat greatly affects your health, as previously noted.  Here Ariane Lang, BSc, MBA, HealthLine.com, reflects on everything you need to know about millet, including nutrition, benefits, and more, medically reviewed by Miho Hatanaka, RDN, LD:

“Millet is a cereal grain that belongs to the Poaceae family, commonly known as the grass family (1).

It’s widely consumed in developing countries throughout Africa and Asia. While it may look like a seed, millet’s nutritional profile is similar to that of sorghum and other cereals (2Trusted Source).

Millet has gained popularity in the West because it’s gluten-free and boasts high protein, fiber, and antioxidant contents (3Trusted Source).

This article reviews everything you need to know about millet, including its nutrients, benefits, and downsides.

Attributes and types of millet

Millet is a small, round whole grain grown in India, Nigeria, and other Asian and African countries. Considered an ancient grain, it’s used both for human consumption and livestock and bird feed (4, 5Trusted Source).

It has multiple advantages over other crops, including drought and pest resistance. It’s also able to survive in harsh environments and less fertile soil. These benefits stem from its genetic composition and physical structure — for example, its small size and hardness (4, 5Trusted Source, 6Trusted Source).

Although all millet varieties belong to the Poaceae family, they differ in color, appearance, and species.

This crop is also divided into two categories — major and minor millets, with major millets being the most popular or commonly cultivated varieties (4).

Major millets include:

• pearl
• foxtail
• proso (or white)
• finger (or ragi)

Minor millets include:

• Kodo
• barnyard
• little
• Guinea
• browntop
• fonio
• adlay (or Job’s tears)

Pearl millet is the most widely produced variety intended for human consumption. Still, all types are renowned for their high nutritional value and health benefits.

Nutritional profile

Like most cereals, millet is a starchy grain — meaning that it’s rich in carbs. Notably, it also packs several vitamins and minerals (4).

One cup (174 grams) of cooked millet packs (7Trusted Source):

• Calories: 207
• Carbs: 41 grams
• Fiber: 2.2 grams
• Protein: 6 grams
• Fat: 1.7 grams
• Phosphorus: 25% of the Daily Value (DV)
• Magnesium: 19% of the DV
• Folate: 8% of the DV
• Iron: 6% of the DV

Millet provides more essential amino acids than most other cereals. These compounds are the building blocks of protein (4, 8Trusted Source, 9Trusted Source).

What’s more, finger millet boasts the highest calcium content of all cereal grains, providing 13% of the DV per 1 cooked cup (100 grams) (4, 10Trusted Source, 11Trusted Source).

Calcium is necessary to ensure bone health, blood vessel and muscular contractions, and proper nerve function (12Trusted Source).

Benefits of millet

Millet is rich in nutrients and plant compounds. Therefore, it may offer multiple health benefits.”

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