Topic summary contributed by volunteer(s): Randy
Dried peas such as split peas are considered pulses, whereas fresh green peas are not. Up to 3-5 daily servings of split peas or other legumes such as lentils and beans, can be an important part of a healthy, whole-food, plant-based diet. The most recent federal dietary guidelines highlight beans and dried peas as unique foods, since they contribute to both protein and vegetable serving goals. Split peas also provide magnesium and antioxidants.
The intake of legumes, including beans, chickpeas, split peas, and lentils, may be the single most important dietary predictor of a long lifespan and can lead to weight loss, improved dental health, protect against skin wrinkles (although green peas may not help with cellulite), improved prostate health, lower inflammation, and a lower risk of breast cancer.
You don’t get the same blood sugar spike from eating split peas and other legumes as you would from eating the same amount of carbs in the form of bread, pasta, or potatoes. Diabetics’ regular, long-term intake of pulses may help with blood sugar control.
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Switching to a plant-based diet has been shown to achieve far better outcomes than those reported on conventional treatments in both active and quiescent stages in both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis.
Clinical trials on Quorn show that it can improve satiety and help people control cholesterol, blood sugar, and insulin levels.
What are the effects of plant-based meats on premature puberty, childhood obesity, and hip fracture risk?
What are the different impacts of plant protein versus animal protein, and do the benefits of plant proteins translate to plant protein isolates?
Environmental assessment of 50 different plant-based meats show them to be vastly more sustainable.
A low-fiber diet is a key driver of microbiome depletion, the disappearance of diversity in our good gut flora.
Do the benefits of beans, and lentils, and chickpeas remain when they’re powdered? Also, how to use temperature stress to boost sprout nutrition.
If the uric acid crystals that trigger gout come from the breakdown of purines, should gout patients avoid even healthy, purine-rich foods, such as beans, mushrooms, and cauliflower?
A guideline is suggested for how to read food labels for grain products such as bread and breakfast cereals.
What happened when the World Health Organization had the gall to recommend a diet low in saturated fat, sugar, and salt and high in fruit and vegetables?
Sulfur dioxide preservatives in dried fruit, sulfites in wine, and the putrefaction of undigested animal protein in the colon can release hydrogen sulfide, the rotten egg gas associated with inflammatory bowel disease.
There’s a cheap concoction one can make at home that safely wipes out cavity-forming bacteria on our teeth better than chlorhexidine mouthwash and also reduces their plaque-forming ability.
There’s a reason that professional diabetes associations recommend bean, chickpea, split pea, and lentil consumption as a means of optimizing diabetes control.
A head-to-head test of adding beans vs. portion control for metabolic syndrome.
Increasing fruit and vegetable consumption to seven servings a day appears to cut asthma exacerbation rates in half, whereas restricting consumption to Standard American Diet levels leads to a significant worsening of lung function and asthma control.
Even nine servings of fruits and vegetables a day may not reach the minimum recommended intake of antioxidants if one doesn’t make the right choices.
The intake of legumes—beans, chickpeas, split peas, and lentils—may be the single most important dietary predictor of a long lifespan. But what about concerns about intestinal gas?
The so-called “lentil effect” or “second meal effect” describes the remarkable effect of beans to help control blood sugar levels hours, or even the next day, after consumption.
Two theories about the buildup of subcutaneous fat, involving the chemical spermine and the hormone adiponectin, suggest a plant-based diet may help with cellulite.
Inadequate fiber intake appears to be a risk factor for breast cancer, which can explain why women eating plant-based diets may be at lower risk.
What dietary intervention may significantly protect against wrinkles in the crow’s foot area around the eyes?
Some foods appear protective against the development of skin wrinkles—while others may make them worse.
To maintain the low IGF-1 levels associated with a plant-based diet, one should probably eat no more than 3-5 servings of soy foods a day.
All men should consider eating a prostate-healthy diet, which includes legumes (beans, peas, lentils, soy); certain vegetables (like garlic and onions); certain seeds (flax seeds); and the avoidance of refined grains, eggs, and poultry.
A workplace dietary intervention study at GEICO corporate headquarters demonstrates the power of plant-based eating.
Despite promising autopsy and population data suggesting that inadequate magnesium intake is a risk factor for sudden cardiac death, it wasn’t until recently that this was demonstrated in prospective studies.
Antioxidant, anti-inflammatory properties of white compared to yellow and purple potatoes. Purple potatoes may also help lower high blood pressure.
In addition to quantity and quality, the variety of fruits and vegetables consumed matters, as many phytonutrients are not evenly distributed among the various families and parts of plants.
The Sugar Association, Salt Institute, and American Meat Institute all railed against the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
MyPlate represents a significant improvement over the USDA Food Guide Pyramid.
Which are the gentlest cooking methods for preserving nutrients, and which vegetables have more antioxidants cooked than raw?
