Sustainable Utilization of Cereal Waste To Increase its Added Value: Regulatory Effects of Djulis (Chenopodium formosanum) Hull on Blood Lipids

This study investigated the regulatory effects of djulis hull (DH), an agri-food waste of food processing, on blood lipid levels in hyperlipidemic hamsters to evaluate its potential in preventing atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. The hamsters were randomly divided into five groups: (i) normal diet group (control), (ii) high-fat/high-cholesterol diet group (high-fat diet containing 0.2% cholesterol; HFC), (iii) low-dose DH group (HFC diet and treated with 50 mg/kg/day DH powder; LDH), (iv) medium-dose DH group (HFC diet and treated with 100 mg/kg/day DH powder; MDH), and (v) high-dose DH group (HFC diet and treated with 250 mg/kg/day DH powder; HDH). After 6 weeks of experiment, the results showed that the serum levels of triglyceride (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) of hamsters in the HFC group were significantly increased compared with those in the control group (p < 0.05). Oral gavage administration of DH powder significantly and dose-dependently reduced serum levels of TG, TC, and LDL-C, with reductions of 25.0–43.5%, 38.8–51.8%, and 13.3–48.6%, respectively. DH powder also lowered the LDL-C/HDL-C ratio and prolonged the lag time of LDL-C oxidation. Moreover, histopathological examination revealed that DH powder treatment improved HFC diet-induced hepatic steatosis. These findings suggest that DH powder possesses blood lipid-regulating potential, making it a promising functional food ingredient and enabling sustainable utilization of agri-food waste.