Lentils

Going strong for thousands of years

This small legume offers a wealth of nutrition with a mighty history. Lentils belong to the first foods that humans cultivated. Archaeologists have found 8.000 years old lentil seeds in the Middle East. Lentils are even mentioned in the bible.

Compared to other dried beans, lentils are quick to prepare. There are numerous varieties with colours ranging from light yellow and orange to dark brown. They don’t need to be soaked overnight and easily absorb flavours from spices. Lentils contain a lot of fibre, plenty of minerals, complex carbohydrates and a lot of protein without any fat. If you want to loose weight, they should be on your menu.

The fibre of legumes not only keeps your bowels going, it also helps the body to absorb the calories slowly thus avoiding a hike in blood sugar and insulin levels. This is especially important for persons who suffer from diabetes.

Lentils also provide two B-vitamins and big amounts of six important minerals, among them folate, magnesium and iron. Folate is especially important for pregnant women as it helps forming the nervous system of the unborn baby. It is equally important for grown ups as it supports the human metabolism to get rid of homocysteine, a byproduct of digestion. This substance damages artery walls and increases the risk for heart disease.

Magnesium relaxes the walls of arteries and veins thus improving the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout the body. The iron in lentils helps the body to form blood as it is a part of haemoglobin, the red blood cells which transport oxygen through the body. It is also required by the human metabolism for important digestive processes.