Functional Attributes of Amaranth

Amaranth is a plant with high nutritional value, whose nutrients are concentrated in the leaves and the grains. The plant has compounds that showed to have many health benefits, which are mostly present in the oil extracted from the seeds. Most pronounced are: unsaturated fatty acids, lectins, tocopherols, tocotrienols, phytosterols, squalene, isoprenoid compounds, aliphatic alcohols, terpene alcohols and polyphenols, which have properties related to enhancing the immunity system, protection against cancer, prevention against oxidation, control serum lipid levels, decrease pain and inflammation. On the other hand, its components have industrial applications in the market sectors of food production (betalains and carotenoids as antioxidants and natural pigments), cosmetics (squalene) and biodegradable utensils (cellulose). Including amaranth as regular food component in the diet, whether natural or processed, will allow complementing a healthy life style. The continuing research of the amaranth as a pseudo cereal, based on its biotechnological properties, can advance the amaranth plant from a simple pseudo cereal into an important source of nutraceuticals.