Why Beans are An Important Part of Any Diet

Beans and lentils are part of the legume family. Vegetarians and vegans love them because of their high protein content, great health benefits, and their wide variety. There must be hundreds of simple vegetarian recipes that use beans.

Super Health Benefits

Legumes lower cholesterol, are heart-healthy, and can even reduce the risk of many cancers.

High in Dietary Fiber

You may already know that fiber can lower cholesterol and is important for heart health. Fiber also prevents blood sugar levels from rising quickly after eating (this is good news for people with diabetes, insulin resistance, or hypoglycemia).

High in Heart Healthy Nutrients

Beans are an excellent source of folic acid, potassium, and B6, all heart-healthy nutrients.

Potassium helps protect you from high blood pressure and stroke. Folic acid and B6 break down the amino acid homocysteine. If you have high amounts of homocysteine in your blood, it can triple your risk of heart attacks and stroke. Just one cup of cooked, dry beans has 264 mg of folate. This is more than half of the recommended daily intake.

Contain Potent Antioxidants

Beans are loaded with powerful, anti-inflammatory antioxidants flavonoids, and flavonols.

Photo by Min An from Pexels

Beans are also a low fat, low sodium food. And, with the exception of soybeans, they’re also low in calories.

Beans Are One of the Best Vegetarian and Vegan Protein Sources

Legumes have more vegetarian protein than any other plant food. They’re also one of the only sources of lysine, an important amino acid.

Protein Content

Type	Amount
Black Beans (1 cup cooked)	15.24 grams
Canned	n/a
Kidney (1 cup cooked)	15.35 grams
Canned	13.47 grams
Pinto (1 cup cooked)	15.41 grams
Canned	n/a
Chickpeas (Garbanzo)	14.35 grams
Canned	11.88 grams
Navy Beans (1 cup cooked)	14.98 grams
Canned	n/a
Lentils (1 cup cooked)	17.86 grams
Canned	n/a

Protein is important to build muscles and for a healthy metabolism. Plus it makes you feel full. This is important for vegetarians and vegans. When there isn’t enough protein in your meal, you don’t feel satisfied. This can make you eat too much, or eat the wrong foods. It’s one of the reasons why some vegetarians and vegans wind up gaining weight.

The Gas (Flatulence) Issue

Vegans and Vegetarians, especially newbies, frequently run into problems with digestion. The most common is gas.

There’s a compound in beans called oligosaccharides that your body cannot digest or absorb. As a result, they get broken down by bacteria, which produces the gas.

There are solutions. Cook them well. The cooking process significantly reduces the level of oligosaccharides. Another way to reduce the oligosaccharides is to sprout them. And, if all else fails, you can buy a product called Beano.

Conclusion

Beans and lentils are an invaluable superfood for a vegetarian and vegan diet. They’re healthy, easy to prepare and cook and bring a lot of versatility to your meals.

Sources

USDA National Nutrient Database for Protein Content

Deborah Madison, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

Jack Norris, RD, Virginia Messina, MPH, RD, Vegan for Life

Nicholas Perricone, MD, The Perricone Promise: Look Younger Live Longer in Three Easy Steps

Michael Murray, N.D., The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods

Adebamowo, C.Al, E. Cho, L. Sampson, et al. “Dietary Flavonols and Flavonol-Rich Foods Intake and the Risk of Breast Cancer.” Int. J. Cancer 2004;114(4):628-633.

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