Fava Beans plants are stiff erect plants that are around 1.8m in height. Their stems are stout and the leaves are long, with a greyish green hue. The varieties of fava beans are a large range to choose from in this day and age. And they are prepared in many ways too.
Source: laubry.com
Sometimes it could be confusing as well to choose the best one. Fava beans sometimes are purchased when they are fresh, and at other times they are bought when they are dried- large or small, canned and even frozen too. We hope to cover all the information you need about fava beans here. We shall be talking about fava beans in India, what is fava beans good for and its benefits, fava beans calories, fava beans nutrition and more.
Health Benefits Of Fava Beans:
1. Very Good For Your Heart:
For the heart, fava beans are excellent. They have soluble fiber in them, which most experts say that the ingestion of soluble fiber can help keep the cholesterol levels in check. Not only that, the fiber content found in these beans are known to keep the blood sugar levels in control as well. With the help of these fibers found in fava beans, the levels of low-density lipoprotein or the LDL which is bad cholesterol would be brought down to a large extent, and this is what keeps the heart healthy.
Source: goredforwomen.org
2. Lose Weight With Fava Beans:
It is said that a cup of fava beans would bring about forty grams of protein into the body. Sources from the esteemed European Journal of Clinical Nutrition say, if you consume meals that are rich in proteins in and are also high fiber, you would be able to see the results of weight loss sooner. This was in comparison to those diets that were low fat or high in carbs. And there was also a major dip in the levels of cholesterol as well.
3. A Must Have For Pregnant Women:
Expectant mothers would need a lot of calcium and iron, which is what dried fava beans can bring into the body. While a woman is pregnant, she can have fava beans as and when she likes, and she can continue having them while she is lactating as well. The beans, they say, meet around fourteen percent of the RDA for iron, and the beans are also known to bring calcium into the pregnant woman’s body.
Even the feeling of being constipated while being pregnant is kept away when you have fava beans, and this is because of the soluble fiber it has in it. The beans are a good source to keep the woman feeling full and nice, and also to give her a lot of energy.
4. Contains A Lot Of Nutrients:
There are plenty of nutrients in fava beans, say experts. The broad beans as we know them are treasure troves that have a lot of vitamins and minerals in them. This includes the likes of potassium and magnesium, copper and iron, vitamin B1 and phosphorus, and even thiamine as well.
For the central nervous system to function well, it is essential to have a lot of vitamin B1 in your diet, while the role of copper is to help with bloodstream issues, immunity levels and the bone balance in the body, which keeps the overall body healthy and fit. Phosphorus and magnesium are important to have for the body so that the bone health and the blood pressure levels are maintained well, and iron helps with oxygen transportation in the body.
5. Contains Manganese And Folate:
Fava beans are best sources of folate and manganese. Manganese helps with metabolism of carbohydrates and proteins, while folate is known to be very good for the heart, the immunity levels of the body and the red blood corpuscles synthesis too.
6. Helps Treat Parkinsons Disease:
There is levodopa in fava beans, which is the same chemical that is used to treat anyone who suffers from Parkinsons disease. The amount of this agent would depend from one type of fava bean to the next, but they say if you have three ounces of fresh green beans, you would have around fifty to one hundred milligrams of levodopa coming into the body.
According to research linking fava beans to Parkinsons disease, they say that the pods could bring in a lot of relief from the Parkinsons symptoms and sometimes better than what traditional drugs can do. For those who are suffering from this mental diseases, they could have around four ounces of these beans to better cope with the condition of Parkinsons, say experts.
7. Helps Combat Depression And Anxiety:
The tic beans or fava beans are known to help combat anxiety and depression to a large extent. This is because, studies have shown that there is amino acid content called dopamine in them, which can do a lot to improve your mood. And in turn, this helps alleviate your levels of happiness and makes you feel better in the long run.
8. Vitamin C Rich in Fava Beans:
Vitamin C is found in abundance in fava beans, and it is a good source of the same. This is a vitamin as we all known it to be a powerful antioxidant. With this antioxidant, your body gets all the power to fight the onslaught of free radicals. If this is not done, then there could be a lot of oxidative damages in the body.
There would be issues such as premature ageing, fine lines, and wrinkles, cancers, and even the immune system gets weak. This is why experts say having around one hundred grams of raw beans would bring into the body a lot of vitamin C that is much needed.
Source: theblissfulgardeners.com
9. You Don’t Get Hit By Hunger Pangs:
Consuming fava beans means that you get a lot of fiber and protein in the body. There are some studies that say that the two when combined, helps keeps the body full for a very long period of time. This is why consuming fava beans is known to be a low-calorie diet. You can consume it as a tasty snack by smashing boiled fava beans and adding some spices to it. This would have you staying full for long and you would not want to snack for long after you have had them.
Fava Beans Side Effects:
There are alkaloids in fava beans, such as vicine and convicine. The two of them can bring on hemolytic anemia in the body for those who have a hereditary condition of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency, say experts. Also known as G6PD, this is a condition that affects all the cells in the body. Some of the symptoms for the same are:
- Vomiting
- Dizziness
- Blood in the urine
- Jaundice
This condition is also known as FAVISM, which happens because of a congenital defect, and hence it should be treated as soon as possible. Blood tests for G6PD are done to determine if you are at the risk of having this condition.
Also, if you are taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors, you should not be consuming broad beans or fava beans, because they have tyramine in them. And since the plant also has levodopa in it, it can interfere with the system’s ability to metabolize vitamin B6, making it a deficiency.
We thus hope all the information on fava beans we have given here comes in handy. If you have had fava beans before and have recipes to share with us, do write in!
