Understanding the nutrient composition and nutritional functions of highland barley (Qingke): A review

Abstract Background In recent years, the demand for nutritious and healthy food is becoming more and more urgent with the increasing improvement of living standards and the continuous evolution of the disease spectrum. Highland barley cultivates in the Qinghai Tibet Plateau, as the smallest staple food cereals and the largest coarse cereals in China, has attracted much attention because of its unique nutritional value. Scope and approach In this review, the nutrient composition, physiochemical properties of starch, protein, lipid and some major nutritional compounds such as active peptides, polyphenols, vitamins, unsaturated fatty acids, and β-glucan in highland barley and their potential nutritional beneficial effects on animals and human bodies are summarized. Furthermore, the current researches and applications of highland barley are also mentioned, and the outlook about further researches and process is raised as well. Key findings and conclusions Highland barley has become a cash crop with broad application prospects. Meanwhile, it is also regarded as a type of nutritional food rich in healthy and medicinal values due to the physiological active compounds. Moreover, highland barley is a potential source of a number of bioactive components, and the ingestion of highland barley can help reduce the risk of some chronic and metabolic diseases such as coronary heart disease, type II diabetes, obesity and cancer. Based on these findings, highland barley is a worthy staple food to be further studied and processed. This review provides comprehensive understanding on nutritional values of highland barley and theoretical guidance for future researches and development of highland barley-based products.