Researchers in the United States and Canada have found that daily consumption of non-oil-seed legumes such as chickpeas, lentils or peas can significantly reduce "bad cholesterol" and cut the risk of heart disease.
People who ate one three-quarter-cup serving of legumes daily had a 5 percent reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels – a decrease that suggests a 5 to 6 percent reduced risk of major vascular events such as heart attack and stroke.
Nutritionists and preventive cardiologists not involved in the research said the new findings were noteworthy. Dr. Mehmet Oz recently touted the importance of legumes in our diet and eats them to fight his own cholesterol.
It is a well-known fact that high-soluble, fiber-rich foods, like legumes, produce significant effects on LDL numbers and actually add to the cholesterol-lowering effects of statins. Studies show that for every 1 percent fall in cholesterol, there is a 1-to-2 percent fall in cardiovascular risk.
Legumes have long been a favorite among nutrition researchers and health experts because of their proven benefits in lowering the risk of many killer chronic conditions, including type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. Now, according to this study, a legume-loaded diet can lower high cholesterol levels, as well.
That's not to say, of course, that a handful of beans a day can necessarily replace cholesterol-lowering statins for the 43.2 million U.S. adults who currently take them. Rather, it seems that adding a daily serving of tasty legumes like peas, beans, chickpeas and lentils in your diet will serve as a companion to this important prescription drug.
Few know the health benefits more than Swarna Moldanado, Ph.D. She grew up in India where legumes were not considered the super foods they are now – they were just part of her regular Indian diet. They could be found at any meal, breakfast included. But all that changed when she moved to America and began eating whatever they served in the school cafeteria, which was mostly meats and meat products. It was only when she started cooking for herself that she realized what had been missing in her American diet—legumes. Soon she was again adding dry beans, peas, lentils, and other legumes to her daily diet and feeling better for doing so.
As an educator, Moldanado was curious to learn why legumes were so overlooked in the United States. Her subsequent research turned up a number of misconceptions and inaccuracies as reasons for the prevailing lack of interest in them. This, in turn, let her to research legume-based diets in other parts of the world to ascertain what, if any, impact they had on health and disease in those locales. The information she accumulated was very enlightening—across the board it showed there were major advantages to be gained by adding legumes to the diet.
From here it was a short step to sharing her discoveries and doing this to help improve people’s health became the initial reason for her decision to write Legumes: The Super Foods that Should be Regulars on Your Plate. Any reader interested in optimizing or simply maintaining their health would do themselves a favor by adding this important book to their must-read list.
To learn more about the importance of adding legumes to your diet, check out the book at http://basichealthpub.com/products/legumes-the-super-foods-that-should-regulars-on-your-plate
or at www.amazon.com
This looks very interesting and would be helpful to me. I plan to read it!
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