•Metabolic diseases are emerging at alarming rate.•Food sustainability, waste minimization and nutrient recovery are essential.•Cereal bran is storehouse of dietary fibre, phenolic acids, flavonoid, vitamins etc.•It ameliorates insulin resistance, obesity risk and cardiovascular complications.•This paper reports the most recent developments in these aspects. Cereal brans, the by-products of grain processing, have acquired a crucial status in functional food formulation. They have been recognized to be storehouse of non-starch carbohydrates (arabinoxylan, beta-glucan), phenolic acids (ferulic acid), flavonoids (anthocyanin), oil (γ-oryzanol), vitamins (carotenoids, tocols), oligosaccharides, folates and sterols among others. Their physico-chemical properties render them desirable for food fortification. Brans derived from rice, wheat, oat, barley, sorghum, millet, rye and maize have been characterized to possess a wealth of health-promoting ingredients. They have been validated to impart antilipaemic, antiatherogenic, antihypertensive and hypoglycaemic properties. They have been verified to combat oxidative stress, attenuate insulin resistance, avert obesity risk by inducing satiety and alleviate cardiovascular complications. This paper delineates the recent findings on their phytochesmitry, emerging therapeutic roles and mechanism of biological action in nutshell, with an aim to stimulate further research.