From today we have one more reason to include black beans in our diet. These tasty legumes are not only satiating but also counteract obesity, hyperglycemia and chronic inflammation. This emerges from a recent scientific research that appeared in the Nutrients journal thanks to the work of a Mexican team (Sanchez-Tapia et al, Nutrients, 2020).
The properties of black beans
Legumes are foods that, unfortunately, we too often forget to include in our diet. Yet legumes can prove to be precious allies for health, as is the case with the black beans mentioned in today's article. Black beans provide proteins and resistant starches that are starches that are not digested and therefore do not increase blood sugar but reach the colon where they nourish and support the intestinal microbiota. In particular, resistant starches are associated with an increase in butyrate, a substance that counteracts inflammation, insulin resistance and obesity. Butyrate strengthens the intestinal barrier against pathogens and supplies energy to the epithelial cells of the colon. Not only that, black beans are also rich in antioxidants of the phenol class and phytosterols, which act by reducing cholesterol. Despite these benefits, no studies had ever investigated the beneficial effect on body weight, blood sugar and inflammation resulting from the consumption of black beans.
Black beans against obesity, diabetes and inflammation
To fill this gap, Mexican scientists conducted a study on animals, mice in particular. The mice were divided into four groups. The first group was given a diet rich in sugar and fat and black beans, the second group black beans and a standard diet, the third group a diet rich in sugar and fat and casein, and the fourth group casein and a standard diet. After two months it emerged that, despite a diet high in sugar and fat, those who had also eaten black beans had less body weight gain than those who had consumed casein and the same diet high in sugar and fat. Not only that, in those who had consumed black beans the amount of body fat present was reduced by almost 30%. In addition, black beans have also been shown to reduce the postprandial glycemic peak. Very interesting was also the fact that black beans acted on the composition of the intestinal microbiota, allowing to increase the concentration of some bacteria associated with the production of butyrate and the reduction of inflammation and colitis.
Conclusions
Therefore, green light for black beans, useful for reducing the risk of diabetes, obesity and inflammation. And then black beans are also very tasty and lend themselves to many preparations. Like the peperonata with rice and beans with kombu seaweed or the black bean, rice and pumpkin soup or even the chili with beans in which red beans can be replaced by black beans, all recipes that you can find in the Healthy Food section.
