Beans & Health
Beans, Beans
The Musical Fruit,
The More You Eat,
The More You Toot,
The More You Toot,
The Better You Feel,
So Eat Baked Beans With Every Meal!
Written by Anonymous (A New Zealand Rhyme)
This week, we are continuing our discussion of foods that are a wealth of nutrition. Last week we discussed greens, and this week we will talk about beans. Beans and greens make up the bulk of my diet and after reading these two articles, I’m sure you will see why.
These nutritional powerhouses are often overlooked. They aren’t as sexy as a big juicy steak, but pound for pound, they have a more diverse set of nutrients to offer, and are easier on your wallet and our planet!
One thing that makes this category of plants so special is their ability to work in harmony with soil bacteria to pull nitrogen out of the air and move it into the plant’s tissues. This nitrogen fixing is used to create amino acids - the building blocks of protein. Beans are potent sources of plant protein.
One of the biggest arguments against plant proteins is they are not complete proteins in and of themselves. A complete protein, as we remember, contains all of the amino acids that our bodies cannot make on their own but are essential for life. This argument isn’t the whole story as we do not commonly eat beans on their own. When beans are eaten with whole grains, their amino acids combine to create a complete protein on your plate. Humans have been pairing these two foods together for millennia - even before we understood the biochemistry behind this combination.
Like all other plant foods, beans also contain fiber, vitamins, minerals, and a diverse array of phytochemicals that we have yet to fully understand. Additionally, they are low in fat, cholesterol-free, store easily and long term, and are a much more sustainable way to feed people than large scale meat production. (1)
The Nutritional Makeup of Beans:
Just as with greens, there is a vast variety of different beans, each with their own unique nutritional makeup. This is also where I should expand on the different plants found in this category. Beans belong to a group of foods known as pulses. A pulse is any plant in the legume family that has a lower fat profile and is able to store long-term in its dry form. This category includes: beans, lentils, chickpeas, peas, cow peas, pigeon peas, bambara beans, vetches, lupins, and broad beans. (2) While peanuts are technically a legume, their high fat content puts them in a category of their own.
When I say beans, I am referring to this entire spectrum of pulses. Despite the diversity, there are key nutrients that all beans share in common. (3)
Vitamins:
Folate
Minerals:
Calcium
Potassium
Iron
Zinc
Magnesium
Other Nutrients:
Protein:
Beans, with the exception of fava beans, are all quite rich in protein when compared to other plant foods. The key amino acids that are missing from beans are the sulphur-containing methionine and cysteine, which are both found in abundance in whole grains. Beans are particularly rich in lysine, which is low in grains. (3) Can you see how the two complement each other well? Next week we will take a deeper look at grains and this will give us a chance to examine their vitamin and mineral profiles as well.
Fiber:
If we look back a few weeks to the fiber article, we will remember the importance of having a diversity of fiber types in our diet for both disease prevention and treatment. Beans are a fantastic source of both soluble and insoluble fiber - hence the tooting rhyme above.
Comparing Beans:
Let’s take a look at four different types of beans to see how their nutritional profiles stack up. Let’s look at black beans, lentils, chickpeas, and split peas. Again, I am using my free cronometer account to access the NCCFND database for all of the information below. This information is free and publicly available. I encourage you to use it to evaluate some of your favorite foods, too. These numbers are for a ½ cup serving of beans cooked from their dry state with nothing added but water. Also, the Daily Value (DV) percentage is based upon an adult woman of child-bearing age.
Black Beans: 114 Calories
Folate: 128.14 micrograms (32%)
Calcium: 23.22 mg (2.3%)
Potassium: 305.29 mg (8.7%)
Iron: 1.81 mg (10%)
Zinc: 0.96 mg (6.4%)
Magnesium: 60.2 mg (15%)
Fiber: 7.48 g (30% of my increased daily target of 45 grams - see fiber article for more details on this target)
Protein: 7.62 g - (your target will depend on your age, weight, and health goals, this is 15.2% of my target goal. See my protein article for more details on calculating your target.)
Lentils (green/brown variety): 115 Calories
Folate: 179.19 micrograms (44.8%)
Calcium: 18.81 mg (1.9%)
Potassium: 365.30 mg (10.4%)
Iron: 3.3 mg (18.3%)
Zinc: 1.26 mg (8.4%)
Magnesium: 35.64 mg (8.9%)
Fiber: 5.8 g (23.2%)
Protein: 8.93 g (17.9%)
Chickpeas (yellow): 135 Calories
Folate: 141.04 micrograms (35.3%)
Calcium: 40.18 mg (4%)
Potassium: 238.61 mg (6.8%)
Iron: 2.37 mg (13.2%)
Zinc: 1.25 mg (8.4%)
Magnesium: 39.36 mg (9.8%)
Fiber: 6.23 g (24.9%)
Protein: 7.27 g (14.5%)
Split Peas (green): 116 Calories
Folate: 127.4 micrograms (31.9%)
Calcium: 27.44 mg (2.7%)
Potassium: 709.53 mg (20.3%)
Iron: 2.53 mg (14%)
Zinc: 1.96 mg (13.1%)
Magnesium: 70.56 mg (17.6%)
Fiber: 20.87 g (83.5%)
Protein: 16.35 g (32.7%)
As you can see, different beans will have different nutritional profiles. Eating several different varieties will help you reach your nutritional goals. Are you as surprised as I was by split peas? What a powerhouse of fiber, protein, magnesium, zinc, and potassium! Given all the buzz about black beans being a superfood, I’m shocked that they didn’t lead in any of these categories. Perhaps the superfoods fad needs a more objective look?
Also, keep in mind that these facts are for a ½ cup of cooked beans - that’s a lot of nutrition in a small volume of food with a modest amount of calories!
Applications:
Now that we can see with our own eyes just how nutritionally valuable beans are, what do we do? Do we start eating them with every meal like the rhyme above suggests, load up on 25 pound bags of dried beans, purchase flats of canned beans, or eat gallons of hummus and split pea soup each week?
First, let’s slow down for a moment. Adding beans will be health promoting for most people, but an adjustment period is needed! If you have ever tried to go from a diet with no beans to one that includes beans multiple times a day, you will have noticed some unpleasant side effects. You may also have jumped on the paleo bandwagon and be a bit sceptical of beans. I had my dance with paleo in the past too; I’m not immune from fads either. Let’s address these two topics first.
A Quick Note on Flatulence (gas):
Increasing your fiber intake, especially fermentable fibers, will result in gas. This is a temporary situation. Just as with any other ecosystem, your gut microflora will react to a drastic change in its food supply. It will take time to re-establish a balance.
The solution is to go slow and watch your body’s reaction to each change. A great way to do this is to start by adding a ½ cup of beans to your daily diet. Looking at our examples above, we wouldn’t want to start with split peas and their almost 21 grams of fiber in that ½ cup. A gentler start would be to add lentils or chickpeas. Every few days, you could either increase your intake of these lower fiber beans or introduce one with a higher fiber content. Gauge your ability to increase your fiber intake by any symptoms of abdominal bloating, flatulence, or loose stools you develop.
As the balance of microorganisms living within you adjusts, those able to digest fiber more completely will grow in number, and you will be able to tolerate more fiber. This is good news for you and all of the life that depends on you as their home and source of food.
A Quick Note on Lectins:
Oh lectins, those “troublesome” molecules that weren’t commonly known until Dr. Gundry and his Plant Paradox book. First, please do note that people have been eating lectins since there were people. Next, please also note that Dr. Gundry is selling supplements designed to help you “eliminate these toxic proteins.” (4) If the person alerting you to a questionable claim is also making money off selling the “cure,” this is a red flag. It’s also a common operating procedure in the Wellness Industrial Complex. Please do not be fooled.
Okay, my soapbox is put away - for now.
Lectins are protein structures that bind to carbohydrates. They are in all plants but are especially rich in beans, greens, and whole grains. They have also been popularly blamed for many different health ills from autoimmunity to obesity. Lectins are sometimes referred to as “anti-nutrients” because they can bind tightly to minerals making them difficult to absorb.
Here’s the thing, when we soak and cook our beans and whole grains, this changes their structure and releases those minerals. If we were to eat raw kidney beans, this would be a potentially life-threatening problem due to their high content of “active” lectins, but when we soak and boil those same beans, this “deactivates” the lectins and they are now safe to eat. (5)
Those who cite scientific studies on the dangers of lectins are ignoring the fact that we do not eat raw beans and whole grains. If you want to reduce the lectin content of your beans and whole grains, simply soak them in water overnight and cook them before eating. This takes a bit of planning ahead, but we are perfectly capable of doing so.
A Few Ideas to Get You Started:
Some people enjoy eating beans by the spoonful - I’ll admit I’m one of them. But others do not. Here are a few bean-rich dishes to try that may become a new favorite:
Hummus - this dip is traditionally made with chickpeas, but any bean will work.
Bean burritos - pair them with a whole grain tortilla for a complete protein - teff tortillas are fantastic for a gluten-free option.
Falafel - yummy little bean balls of flavor!
Lentil soup
Split pea soup
Baked beans
Chili
Bean salads
Beans and rice
Black eyed peas with collard greens
Dal
Black bean burgers
Sprinkle them on top of your salad for a protein boost
Add them to a smoothie - if you have been around for a while, you know I often stuff everything but the kitchen sink into my blender and head out the door for my day. Hey, even the picture on my business cards is me in my garden with my smoothie in hand!
If you have favorite bean-rich recipes, please do share them with us!
Intake Goals:
Your intake targets will depend on your preferences, your goals, your overall health, and your eating habits. If you are following a whole-foods-plant-based diet that skips meat and animal products like me, you may aim for 1.5 cups of cooked beans daily. That might not work for you though.
A semi-recent study was published in the journal Nutrition Review aiming to answer the question of: “how many beans should we eat?” Based on the nutritional content of beans, eating habits around the world, and different national nutritional recommendations, the authors recommended defining a serving of beans as one ½ cup. That is a great starting point. (1)
From there, they hemmed and hawed a bit about how many servings of beans people should eat weekly ranging from daily to several times a week.
Since my reach is much smaller, I’m going to give it to you straight: try to eat at least one serving of beans each day. It’s not all that hard, beans are quite cost effective, they store easily, you can purchase small amounts in the bulk section of your grocery store, and they are easy to enjoy as the centerpiece of a meal or more camouflaged.
You can choose to soak and cook your own beans or purchase them canned. Look for organic beans, if you can find them, as conventionally grown beans are a crop that is heavily sprayed with pesticides. Also, if you are purchasing canned beans, look for cans that have a BPA-free label to avoid this hormone upsetting chemical.
Remember, start slow and try not to overwhelm your digestive system and gut microbes. You and they need time to adjust to any major changes in your diet.
Next Week:
Next week we will continue our exploration of different foods by looking at whole grains.
To our health!
References
Marinangeli CPF, Curran J, Barr SI, Slavin J, Puri S, Swaminathan S, Tapsell L, Patterson CA. Enhancing nutrition with pulses: defining a recommended serving size for adults. Nutr Rev. 2017 Dec 1;75(12):990-1006. doi: 10.1093/nutrit/nux058. PMID: 29202192; PMCID: PMC5914352.
What are Pulses, https://pulses.org/what-are-pulses, accessed 4/29/2021
Pulses & Nutrition, https://pulses.org/future-of-food/pulses-nutrition, accessed 4/26/2021
About Lectin Shield, https://gundrymd.com/ftc-offers/lectin-shield/ accessed 4/29/2021
Lectins, https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/anti-nutrients/lectins/, accessed 4/29/2021