What is Green Bean?
Green beans are members of the common bean family, Phaseolus vulgaris, and are a popular part of diets around the world. There are slight variations in shape in different areas of cultivation .The green beans may be called many different things, including French beans, fine beans, string beans, or even squeaky beans, depending on where you are eating them. There are approximately 150 varieties of green beans throughout the world that come in all shapes and colours, even purple! Despite the variable appearance of the beans, their nutritional content and health benefits remain similar. Green beans are a versatile vegetable that can be grown in many different climates, which has helped to make them such a popular and globally recognized food.
They fall into two categories: “pole beans” and “bush beans”. Pole beans tend to climb like vines, require support systems to grow properly, and are slightly slower in reaching maturity. Bush beans are lower to the ground, require no support, and have faster developmental rates, meaning that some farmers and growers can have more than one crop of bush beans in a single season. It is important to remember that green beans are unripe or immature foods, so some people prefer to soak or cook the beans before eating them, but there are no proven harmful effects of eating raw green beans. While many “common beans” share similar attributes, they are each unique, and are chosen for diets according to the individual properties that each one offers. Green beans are a favorite choice in many cultures for the variety of vitamins, nutrients, and beneficial properties that they contain!
Health Benefits of Green Bean
Pre-Natal Health: Green beans are also a great source of folic acid, which plays a key role in a number of internal processes, but none are more important than protecting infants in the womb. Folic acid levels in a woman’s body are vital to the normal and healthy development of the fetus in utero, especially in preventing neural tube defects. Green beans provide an easy and delicious way to keep folic acid levels high, and ensure a healthy and happy baby.
Immune System: The presence of various immune system-boosting antioxidants in green beans is well known, but as more research on their benefits is done, it is becoming clear that there are far more antioxidant properties than we previously thought. Antioxidants are beneficial compounds in our body that seek out dangerous free radicals and eliminate them from our system before they can cause illness or tissue damage. They are a good source of flavonoids and carotenoids, but the variety of those pigments was previously unknown. Flavonoids contain basic antioxidants like quercetin and kamferol, but also more useful and beneficial ones like catechins and epicatechins. Catechins have been shown to reduce the severity of strokes. Carotenoids found in green beans contain antioxidants like beta carotene and lutein. Beta carotene has been linked to a number of benefits within the body.
Eye Health: Certain specific carotenoids that are found in green beans can also prevent macular degeneration, which is a decrease in vision and eye function. Lutein and Zeaxanthin are focused at the macula on the eye, and play a key role in preventing any stress to the inner workings of the eye. Ensuring that these carotenoid levels stay strong to prevent vision deterioration is one of the many benefits of including green beans in your balanced diet.
Bone Health: There are a number of nutrients, such as calcium, found in green beans that are integral in preventing bone deterioration and osteoporosis. They contain vitamin K, vitamin A, and silicon. Deficiencies in many of these compounds have been connected to increased bone loss, strength, and durability. Silicon is not the most common mineral to hear about, and significant amounts are relatively rare in most foods. However, green beans are a terrific source for silicon, which is a key element in bone regeneration and overall bone health.
Gastrointestinal Issues: Green beans are packed with fiber, which is a hugely beneficial compound in our bodies. By keeping enough fiber in our diets, we are able to ease certain digestive issues like constipation, hemorrhoids, ulcers, and acid reflux disease. These conditions range from mild irritants to potentially life threatening, and the amount of fiber we consume is a key element in their prevention. In a normal serving of green beans, which is 110 grams, you can gain 15% of the daily recommended amount of fiber. They are one of the best vegetables to keep your stomach working properly
Cardiovascular Disease: Green beans can help reduce the risk of heart disease due to their high levels of flavonoids. Flavonoids are polyphenolic antioxidants that are commonly found in fruits and vegetables. They have high levels of flavonoids and these antioxidants have certain anti-inflammatory properties. Test subjects with high flavonoid levels experienced anti-thrombotic results, preventing blood clots in the arteries and veins. Cardiovascular disease, heart attacks, and strokes are commonly caused by thrombotic activity, which means that a healthy volume of green beans and flavonoids in a diet can help prevent some of these conditions.
Colon Cancer: The high fiber content of green beans can also positively impact your digestive system. Certain types of fiber can ease the digestive process and promote healthy bowel movements, which decreases the stress on the intestinal tract.
Diabetes: These power-packed legumes have been shown to help manage and regulate diabetes symptoms in many patients. Certain studies have shown a definitive hypoglycemic influence on patients with diabetes. Diabetes is a condition that requires constant maintenance of blood sugar levels at a normal level so the body can perform necessary tasks. Natural regulators of diabetes are rare, and the connection of beans and similar plants to the control or early prevention of diabetes is great news for many people.
Immune System: The presence of various immune system-boosting antioxidants in green beans is well known, but as more research on their benefits is done, it is becoming clear that there are far more antioxidant properties than we previously thought. Antioxidants are beneficial compounds in our body that seek out dangerous free radicals and eliminate them from our system before they can cause illness or tissue damage.They are a good source of flavonoids and carotenoids, but the variety of those pigments was previously unknown. Flavonoids contain basic antioxidants like quercetin and kamferol, but also more useful and beneficial ones like catechins and epicatechins. Catechins have been shown to reduce the severity of strokes. Carotenoids found in green beans contain antioxidants like beta carotene and lutein. Beta carotene has been linked to a number of benefits within the body.
Uses of Green Bean
- Green beans are eaten around the world, and are marketed canned, frozen, and fresh.
- Green beans are often steamed, boiled, stir-fried, or baked in casseroles. A dish with green beans popular throughout the United States, particularly at Thanksgiving, is green bean casserole, which consists of green beans, cream of mushroom soup, and French fried onions.
- Some US restaurants serve green beans that are battered and fried, and some Japanese restaurants serve green bean tempura.
- Green beans are also sold dried, and fried with vegetables such as carrots, corn, and peas, as vegetable chips.