Health beans, lentils and peas help in losing weight

Only 130 grams of beans a day are enough to lose weight over a longer period of time
Many people are trying to lose weight. There are many ways to lose some weight, such as dieting or exercise. Sometimes a simple change of diet is enough. If people eat 130 grams of beans, peas, chickpeas and lentils a day, this helps them according to a recent study on weight loss.

If you're one of the people trying to lose a few pounds, there could be a simple trick to help you reach your goals faster. Researchers at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto have now discovered in an investigation that losing weight helps people eat 130 grams of beans, peas or lentils daily. The physicians published the results of their study in the journal "The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition".

Eating 130 grams of beans, lentils or chickpeas daily can help you lose weight. In addition, such foods are healthy, protect the heart and lower cholesterol. (Image: romantsubin / fotolia.com)

Beans saturate heavily, so we eat less
For a long time it has been known that the food of many beans, chickpeas and lentils is healthy and can help us lose weight. These foods are preferred by health-conscious people because they contain a lot of nutrients and are low in fat, the physicians at St. Michael's Hospital explain. Eating 130 grams of beans, peas, chickpeas or lentils a day helps prevent overweight. Beans make us feel we have eaten enough, so this diet prevents us from eating any more foods or snacks, says lead author Russell de Souza.

Beans and lentils help to lose weight and lower cholesterol
For their study, researchers from St. Michael's Hospital analyzed the results of 21 clinical trials in which 940 men and women participated. A single serving of beans a day meant that subjects averaged 0.34 kg over a six-week period, the physicians explain. The weight loss was relatively small, but the results suggest that such a diet change can definitely help us lose weight. More importantly, beans and lentils help to stop increasing, researchers say. Previous work by hospital scientists has shown that meals with beans, lentils, and peas increase our sense of satiety by about 31 percent. In addition, such foods are also good for our heart, because they clearly help to lower cholesterol levels, the experts add.

Lentils, beans and peas are slow to digest and do not cause insulin shots
Beans, lentils and similar foods have a low glycemic index. Such foods are digested only slowly and they do not cause our hormone insulin to skyrocket, say the doctors. Such insulin spurts are caused by foods with high glycemic index and can then lead to diabetes and weight gain. These foods include, for example, white rice, white bread and some cereal. (As)