Purple Wheat: Food Development, Anthocyanin Stability, and Potential Health Benefits

Abstract

Colored wheats such as black, blue, or purple wheat are receiving a great interest as healthy food ingredients due to their potential health-enhancing attributes. Purple wheat is an anthocyanin-pigmented grain that holds huge potential in food applications since wheat is the preferred source of energy and protein in human diet. Purple wheat is currently processed into a variety of foods with potent antioxidant properties, which have been demonstrated by in vitro studies. However, the health impacts of purple wheat foods in humans still require further investigations. Meanwhile, anthocyanins are vulnerable molecules that require special stabilization treatments during food preparation and processing. A number of stabilization methods such as co-pigmentation, self-association, encapsulation, metal binding, and adjusting processing conditions have been suggested as a means to diminish the loss of anthocyanins in processed foods and dietary supplements. The present review was intended to provide insights about purple wheat food product development and its roles in human health. In addition, methods for stabilizing anthocyanins during processing were briefly discussed.

Antioxidant Properties and Geroprotective Potential of Wheat Bran Extracts with Increased Content of Anthocyanins

“…In recent years, wheat breeding has been focused on accumulating anthocyanin compounds in the grain, which can improve food quality and human health [33][34][35]. Previous studies have revealed that anthocyanins remain stable during bread production [43,44] and can be easily incorporated into human diet by using purple grain in bakery products [42].…”

“…We investigated wheat bran extract as a natural source of anthocyanins, which can be regularly consumed by incorporating purple grain into bread preparation without any additional additives or supplements [42]. Previous studies have demonstrated that anthocyanins remain intact during bread production [43,44].…”

Antitumor Effects of an Anthocyanin-Rich Grain Diet in a Mouse Model of Lewis Lung Carcinoma

“…In recent years, breeding for the anthocyanins content in wheat grains has become a focus [ 11 ] as anthocyanin-rich cultivars have shown to be very promising as functional foods [ 12 , 13 ]. The development of biofortified colored wheat adds nutritional and functional health benefits to the energy-rich wheat.…”