Studies show eating legumes is beneficial to your health and can lower your risk of diabetes. Find out how you can easily add chickpeas, lentils, and beans into your diet.

Chickpeas, lentils, and beans are becoming even more popular. You can easily walk through grocery isles and see them in the form of chips, crackers, and even desserts such as black bean brownies. And even better – A recent study published in Clinical Nutrition shows adding legumes into your diet may lower your risk of type 2 diabetes.

Diabetes

Diabetes is a threatening disease that affects 1 in every 10 Americans each year. While you are born with type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes can be caused by genetics or lifestyle. The condition is characterized by high blood glucose and insulin resistance. Those who suffer from diabetes have a higher risk for a heart disease and stroke. A few symptoms of diabetes include:

• Frequent thirst
• Fatigue
• Frequent urination
• Increased hunger
• Blurred vision

Lowering Risk of Diabetes with Legumes

Legumes consist of chickpeas, lentils, peas, alfalfa, and variety of beans. The legumes food group is known to be powerfully nutritious for it’s high level of B vitamins. B vitamins help the body regulate its metabolism and create energy.

In addition, legumes are a high fiber foods containing magnesium, calcium, and potassium. They also include various phytochemicals which are variety of bioactive compounds found in plants. This allows them to improve the metabolism and protect against diabetes and heart disease. Lastly, legumes are considered a “low glycemic food” which allows the body to regulate blood glucose levels to increase slowly when they are consumed.

Boosting Your Intake of Legumes

There are a variety of ways to add legumes in your diet. Don’t be afraid to get creative, there are plenty of options. For an example, switch your all purpose flour with chickpea flour. You can even add black beans to your salad. Munch of plain chickpeas covered in salt or spices like paprika instead of chips. If you are found of hummus, use it as a dip for vegetables or in your salad. In conclusion, this high fiber food group is a delicious way to protect your health and lower your risk of diabetes.