Benefits of unripened banana flour

It is recognised that foods that have a low glycemic index (GI) are beneficial to health and especially to those with Diabetes. A low GI means that the food is digested slowly and the nutrients it contains are released into the bloodstream over a long time period. This will make a food seem “more filling”.

High GI foods release sugars into the blood stream quickly and this can be a major issue for those with blood sugar problems, like Diabetes.

Most baked goods have high GIs due to the ingredients they contain. Biscuits are not high on the foods that should be eaten by those who should be eating low GI foods.

A recent study has shown that by replacing up to 50 percent of the usual wheat flour with flour made from unripened bananas, biscuits can become a food that may also be enjoyed by those with blood sugar and other health conditions.

The unripe banana flour is extremely high in undigestible starch and this is what makes the biscuits produced low in GI.

This study will obviously only be a starting point in the ongoing work to improve the quality of people’s lives whilst still assisting with health issues. Obesity is increasing globally and studies like this show that all people may be able to see their cookies and eat them too.

With the rain and damage in North Queensland over summer, bananas became very expensive for quite a while. It would not have been the time to be making flour from unripened bananas as there was more value in selling what was available as fresh fruit.

However, there is a potential for fruit that is intact, and not contaminated, but not suitable for sale, to be converted to this new type of flour before the fruit ripens. This would be an excellent example of sustainability, by using something that would only be going to waste otherwise.

The article was published first on line in LWT – Food Science and Technology. “Starch digestibility and glycemic index of cookies partially substituted with unripened banana flour” by E Agama-Acevedo, J.J. Islas-Hernandez, G.Pacheco-Vargas, P.Osorio-Diaz, L.Arturo Bello-Perez.