A Frontier Review of Nutraceutical Chinese Yam

Yams are the edible subterranean rhizomes, or tubers, of plants from the genus . There are approximately 600 species of yam plants in the world, with more than 90 of these growing in East Asia. One particular species, Thunb., is highly praised as "the Chinese yam". This distinction arises...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Foods 2024-05, Vol.13 (10), p.1426
Main Authors: Khol, Matthew, Ma, Fanyi, Lei, Lijing, Liu, Wei, Liu, Xiuhua
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Antidiabetics
Antihypertensives
Aquatic plants
batatasin
Carbohydrates
Cardiovascular disease
Cell growth
Colorectal cancer
Cultivars
Diabetes
Diabetes mellitus
Dioscorea
Dioscorea opposita Thunb
Dopamine
Food
Food composition
Food sources
Functional foods
Functional foods & nutraceuticals
Glucose
Health aspects
Herbal medicine
Huai Shanyao
Immunomodulation
Inflammation
Lectins
Medicine
Medicine, Chinese
Pharmaceutical research
Physiochemistry
polysaccharide
Proteins
Rhizomes
Traditional Chinese medicine
Yams
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Summary:Yams are the edible subterranean rhizomes, or tubers, of plants from the genus . There are approximately 600 species of yam plants in the world, with more than 90 of these growing in East Asia. One particular species, Thunb., is highly praised as "the Chinese yam". This distinction arises from millennia of storied history, both as a nutritional food source and as a principal ingredient in traditional Chinese medicine. Among the many cultivars of Thunb., Huai Shanyao has been widely regarded as the best. This review surveyed the historical background, physiochemical composition, applications as food and medicine, and research prospects for the Chinese yam. Modern science is finally beginning to confirm the remarkable health benefits of this yam plant, long-known to the Chinese people. Chinese yam promises anti-diabetic, anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, anti-hyperlipidemic, anti-hypertensive, anti-cancer, and combination treatment applications, both as a functional food and as medicine.
ISSN:2304-8158
2304-8158
DOI:10.3390/foods13101426