The hard wheat bran is the outer layer of the hard grain.
It is a product of the processing of hard wheat that, in times not far away was used only for animal feed and insulation, today it has been rediscovered as a useful food component.
It is rich in fiber, starch, protein, vitamins and dietary minerals, essential fatty acids and helps the work of the colon.
Studies of its cancer properties have not provided a precise answer, but it seems certain that positive action in colon motility disorders (1) is certain.
Wheat bran contains good amounts of the oligosaccaride hemicellulosea arabinoxylan which is useful to microbiota bacteria.
The daily consumption of whole wheat exerted a marked prebiotic effect on the composition of the human gut microbiota. This prebiotic activity can contribute to the beneficial physiological effects of whole wheat (2).
Regular consumption of whole grain bran or wheat is followed by a slow and continuous release of phenolic acids into the bloodstream. Dietary fiber is rich in phenolic compounds, particularly ferulic acid (3).
As for the amino acids found in wheat bran, the results showed that Se-seleno-methyl-lselenocysteine was the main seleno-amino acid in wheat bran, while seleno-methionine and seleno-cysteine were both (4).
