Broad beans are packed with a whole host of vitamins and minerals. Eating broad beans as part of your diet can be beneficial to your bones, brain function, and even your immune system. Broad beans contain an amino acid called L-dopa, which stimulates the brain to make dopamine , the chemical associated with happiness. Broad beans are also rich in potassium, which can have beneficial effects on blood pressure. Eating foods rich in potassium is the best way of maintaining healthy potassium levels, rather than taking supplements.
What Are Broad Beans?
Broad beans are a type of legume. Legumes are vegetables that grow inside pods. Legumes include all forms of beans and peas from the Fabaceae (or Leguminosae) botanical family. The Fabaceae family includes about 600 general and 13,000 species, making it the third largest family within the plant kingdom. Common legumes include peanuts, soya, lupin, green beans, green peas and fenugreek. Well-known legumes include beans, soybeans, peas, chickpeas, peanuts, lentils, lupins, mesquite, carob, tamarind, alfalfa, and clover.
What Is a Pulse?
The edible seed of a legume is known as a pulse, a name taken from the Latin word puls, meaning a thick soup. Familiar pulses include peas, beans, lentils, and chickpeas. They are most commonly cultivated as a food for human consumption, in large part because of their rich protein and starch content. The higher protein of the pulse seed and foliage is thought to be due in part to the additional nitrogen that pulses receive through nitrogen fixation symbiosis. The amount of protein varies in proportion and importance, depending on the species.
History Of Broad Beans
Broad Beans were first grown thousands of years ago in the Middle East and southwest Asia. Now they are grow in many different places around the world. They’re a staple in cooking across cultures, from Chinese to South American dishes.
Broad Bean Plant Description
Broad bean "Vicia faba" also known as "faba bean" is a legume, similar to runner beans and peas. Broad bean is a bushy, hardy annual that can grow from 3 to 5 feet tall. The plant has square stems with leaves divided into leaflets. The pods are 6 to 8 inches long and contain 4 to 6 flat, oval seeds that can be white, yellow, green, or pinkish-red. Broad beans have been cultivated for thousands of years, and the reason for this is simple, they are very nutritious, they are easy to grow and they produce a large crop for the area they occupy. Broad Beans are a superb crop for smaller plots, producing high yields from a comparatively small area of your vegetable garden. They are best eaten freshly picked from the plant, so home grown broad bean crops have a far superior flavour to those found in the supermarkets.
The flowers are white flowers ands splotched with brown.
Impressive Health Benefits Of Broad Beans
For their relatively small size broad beans are loaded with an incredible amount of nutrients.
One cup of fava beans (170 grams) has:
Calories: 187 calories
Carbs: 33 grams
Fat: Less than 1 gram
Protein: 13 grams
Fiber: 9 grams
Folate: 40% of the (DV)
Manganese: 36% of the DV
Copper: 22% of the DV
Phosphorous: 21% of the DV
Magnesium: 18% of the DV
Iron: 14% of the DV
Potassium: 13% of the DV
Thiamine (vitamin B1) and Zinc: 11% of the DV
(DV) is percent Daily Value!
Now let's check out the impressive health benefits of broad beans!
1. Broad Beans Boost Immunity
The copper in broad beans helps maintain healthy white blood cells. These blood cells destroy pathogens and eliminate free radicals from your system. The human body cannot produce white blood cells on its own, and this is why you need copper. Without white blood cells, the body becomes susceptible to infection and illness, which is why copper is critical to maintain strong immunity.
2. Broad beans are rich in levo-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) the precursor of dopamine.
L-DOPA is a compound that the body converts to the neurotransmitter dopamine that may help with Parkinson’s Disease Symptoms. These symptoms are usually treated with medications that contain L-dopa. Eating green broad beans may help with symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. A study in people with Parkinson’s disease found that eating 1.5 cups "250 grams" of broad beans after 12 hours without medication had a comparable positive effect on blood dopamine levels. While these results are promising, more researches are needed. Always keep in mind that even though broad beans are rich in L-dopa, they should never be used in place of medications!
3. Broad beans maintain blood pressure levels
These beans contain magnesium and potassium, which contribute to relaxing blood vessels and reducing high blood pressure. Therefore, eating a diet that contains green broad beans and other foods rich in magnesium and potassium may contribute to lowering blood pressure and improving heart health.
4. Broad Bean May Help Pregnant Women by Preventing Birth Defects
Broad beans are loaded with folate, a nutrient that promotes proper brain and spinal cord development in infants. Adequate folate intake in pregnant women can help prevent neural tube defects. With it's 40% of the DV for folate one cup (170 grams), broad beans are an excellent choice for pregnant women.
5. Broad Beans Contain Immune-Boosting Nutrients
They’re rich in compounds that may enhance antioxidant activity. Antioxidants are critical to the body’s immune defense, as they fight free radicals that may lead to cell damage and disease . Regularly eating broad beans may boost the immune system.
6. Broad Beans are Beneficial for Bone Health
Fava beans are rich in manganese and copper these two nutrients that may prevent bone loss. Human research also suggests that manganese and copper are vital to bone strength.
7. Broad Beans May Improve Symptoms of Anemia
Eating broad beans may help with symptoms of anemia. Iron is needed to produce hemoglobin, the protein that enables red blood cells to carry oxygen through your body. Iron deficiency can lead to anemia, characterized by fatigue, weakness, dizziness and shortness of breath, so regularly eating broad beans and other iron-rich plant may increase blood iron levels and improve anemia symptoms.
8. Broad Beans May Aid Weight Loss
Fava beans is good for your waistline. Eating (170-gram) of fava beans provides 13 grams of protein and 9 grams of fiber. A diet rich in protein and fiber may improve feelings of fullness, which may result in a lower calorie intake and weight loss. Adding protein and fiber-rich fava beans to your diet may help you reach your weight loss goals. So eatings foods that are rich in protein and fiber such as fava beans may help you lose weight and consume fewer calories overall.
9. Broad Beans May Help Lower Cholesterol
Most of the fiber in brod beans is soluble and may help lower cholesterol levels. These soluble fiber may promote healthy bowel movements by absorbing water in your gut, forming a gel-like substance and softening your stool. It can also bind to and remove cholesterol from your body. The consumption of foods rich in slow-release starch causes a smaller and more gradual increase in blood sugar compared to other types of starch, which makes the consumption of broad beans is particularly indicated in people who suffer from diabetes or suffer from other disorders glycemic. So if you’re trying to improve your cholesterol levels, adding fava beans to your diet may be beneficial.
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Broad beans are not recommended for people with the genetic disorder glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, as eating them may lead to a different type of blood issue called hemolytic anemia!
Broad Bean Side Effects
It is important to exercise moderation while consuming broad beans as an excess of them can have some side effects!
1. Fava beans can cause depression if taken in excess. This is due to the presence of L-dopa in them, which although beneficial for health, in excess can cause a vitamin B6 deficiency.
2. These beans may also have some drug interactions, so if you’re taking medicines for depression, then it is best to consult your doctor before adding these beans to your diet.
3. Broad beans should not be consumed if you have a G6PD deficiency.
4. Broad beans can also cause an allergic reaction to some people, so be cautious while adding them to your diet.
While the side effects of broad beans are rare, but they are very much possible, so please see a medical professional if you feel uncomfortable after eating them.
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Broad beans are high in protein, fiber, folate and several other vitamins and minerals. Making them the longevity food number 1 in the world.
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