Beans and Similar Vegetables as Food 1633 



Methods of rendering legumes most digestible 



Favorable conditions for the greatest utilization of the protein of the 

 dried legumes require: (i) the removal of the skins; (2) thorough cooking 

 in soft water to which a small amount of soda has been added; (3) their 

 moderate use in combination with other foods in a meal. 



With the removal of the skins, some of the germ is also removed; it is 

 believed that these are the parts of the legume that cause the formation 

 of gas by fermenting in the intestine. Persons in good health, leading an 

 active life, seldom experience any discomfort from eating the skins; but 

 since there is the possibility of discomfort, especially on the part of less 

 robust persons and of those engaged in sedentary occupations, the removal 

 of the skins is often advisable and, as described further on, requires very 

 little additional time or work. In addition to rendering the beans more 

 easily digestible, the removal of the skins renders them more thoroughly 

 digestible, because the bulk furnished by the skins, as well as the formation 

 of gas resulting from their fermentation, may cause the food to be hastened 

 along the alimentary tract to such an extent that there is not sufficient 

 time for the greatest extraction of the nutrients. 



Thorough cooking is necessary in order to break down the cell walls 

 of the plant and thus render the protein more accessible to the digestive 

 juices. The amount of protein available when legumes are cooked in 

 soft water has been found to be reduced 7 per cent when they are 

 cooked in hard water. A small amount of soda used in cooking 

 legumes, aids in rendering the protein more digestible and in softening 

 the water. 



Experiments have shown that more of the protein of the legumes is 

 utilized when they form part of a mixed diet and are eaten in a moderate 

 quantity than when they are eaten alone and to excess. Therefore, it is 

 obviously wise not to make them the sole article of food in a meal, but 

 to combine them with other foods, especially those of less concentration, 

 such as green vegetables and fruits. 



Roasted peanuts should not be eaten alone in too great an abundance, 

 and they should be thoroughly masticated. Difficulty in digesting pea- 

 nuts may be caused in part by their high concentration of nutriment, as 

 well as by the fact that a large amount of fat in combination with protein 

 tends to retard digestion in the stomach, which is the part of the alimen- 

 tary tract where one is most conscious of the digestive processes. 



COST 



Under ordinary conditions dried legumes are the cheapest source of 

 protein. For the purpose of reducing the cost of a diet they may very 

 satisfactorily, in part, take the place of meat. Ten cents spent for dried 

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