Clarity

[rolltide]

I need some clarity about beans. I think Dr. McDougall and several others say to limit beans to a cup per day because of possible protein overload. Dr. Greger and Fuhrman say 'the more the better' and point to cultures that overload on beans as the ones who are the healthiest. They also point out that beans are the one food most closely associated with health and longevity.

Has Dr. McDougall changed his mind since he made the one cup limit many decades ago as Dr. Greger suggests that new information might have hanged his mind?

[VeggieSue]

In the webinar with Dr. Gustavo Tolosa on 1/28/2016, when asked if beans are still restricted to one cup a day as in previous books or unlimited, as mentioned in The Color Picture Book, Dr. McDougall gave his explanation as to why beans ARE still restricted to no more than a cup a day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoVxMMrHmdA

[GeoffreyLevens]

In the webinar with Dr. Gustavo Tolosa on 1/28/2016, when asked if beans are still restricted to one cup a day as in previous books or unlimited, as mentioned in The Color Picture Book, Dr. McDougall gave his explanation as to why beans ARE still restricted to no more than a cup a day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoVxMMrHmdA

Starts at 42:24

[GeoffreyLevens]

Just listened and for some reason he is equating more than 1 cup/day as 30% calories from protein!

At 2000 calories/day total, 150 grams protein would be 30% total calories or 600 calories. That's about 10 cups cooked bean/day.

So I do not understand this at all. Can anyone clear this up for me???

[f00die]

Just listened and for some reason he is equating more than 1 cup/day as 30% calories from protein!

At 2000 calories/day total, 150 grams protein would be 30% total calories or 600 calories. That's about 10 cups cooked bean/day.

So I do not understand this at all. Can anyone clear this up for me???

he says the goal is to keep total calories from protein less than 16%
that would be 320 cal for 2000 total cal
he said some ppl like beans a lot
and would eat only beans for their starch
ending up at 30% cal from protein total
the whole point is to limit higher-protein foods
the 1 cup/day for beans is his recommendation
id guess based on his study and experience
i wouldnt care to second-guess him
personally

[landog]

Question everything, even Dr. McDougall!

[Atheria]

Even two cups of beans is only about 30 grams of protein. That's far from being excessive protein intake for the day. Of course, that's assuming you aren't also loading up on tofu, protein powders, etc.

Atheria

[AlwaysAgnes]

Just listened and for some reason he is equating more than 1 cup/day as 30% calories from protein!

At 2000 calories/day total, 150 grams protein would be 30% total calories or 600 calories. That's about 10 cups cooked bean/day.

So I do not understand this at all. Can anyone clear this up for me???

Not sure where the 30% came from. Perhaps daily value? 1 cup of beans has 30% daily value protein? (Daily value being 50 g)

Beans are 21 to 25 percent protein by weight, depending on the bean. So if I ate nothing but beans, my diet would be 21 to 25 percent protein. I would also explode.

Anyway, 21 to 25 percent may not be 30 percent but it's higher than the 16 percent that Dr. McDougall mentions being related to bone loss.

[f00die]

i have good reason to not second-guess
his math is correct as well
100 grams of boiled pintos is 22 calories
1.9 grams of protein
4 cal per gram protein x 1.9 = 7.6 calories
7.6/22 = .34 (34 percent calories from protein)
ive checked a lot of his recommendations like that
and so far havent been able to poke any holes
im really rather skeptical generally
and plus my health improved
when it hadnt with a whole lot of other things i tried
idk,
i think its time for lunch

[rolltide]

I have never heard of Dr. McDougall or anyone address the fact that beans are the one food most associated with health and longevity. No one has mentioned that the cultures that eat many cups of beans at every meal live long health lives.

Does this not refute the idea that we need to limit beans?

[Lyndzie]

I have never heard of Dr. McDougall or anyone address the fact that beans are the one food most associated with health and longevity. No one has mentioned that the cultures that eat many cups of beans at every meal live long health lives.

Does this not refute the idea that we need to limit beans?

I do not know of any culture that eats cups of beans at each meal. I’ve seen it as parts of a meal, but not the dominant food. For instance, Cuban beans and rice is mostly rice. The Tuscans in Italy are called “mangiafagioli,” which translates to “bean eaters,” because they are known for their bean consumption, but the beans are served on bread, or in pasta, or as a side dish. Okinawans eat a modest amount of soybeans, but not many other legumes that I know of.

I’m interested to learn more. What cultures are you thinking of?

[colonyofcells]

For our remote ancestors who lived in trees, greens were actually the main source of protein. Greens are actually very high in protein and are also a source of calcium. For our relatives the gorillas, the main source of protein is probably still not beans, peas and lentils, but gorillas do eat some seeds. Promoting beans, peas, lentils as essential or optimal for plant based diets is probably part of the american obsession with protein. Whole grains and tubers like potato, sweet potato are also a main source of protein. So it is quite easy to get enough protein. For example, a typical meal in a longevity blue zone in china is whole grain + vegetables. For longevity, optimal source of protein is probably unrefined staple foods like whole grains and or tubers plus greens and vegetables rather than beans, peas and lentils.

[AlwaysAgnes]

I have never heard of Dr. McDougall or anyone address the fact that beans are the one food most associated with health and longevity. No one has mentioned that the cultures that eat many cups of beans at every meal live long health lives.

Does this not refute the idea that we need to limit beans?

I do not know of any culture that eats cups of beans at each meal. I’ve seen it as parts of a meal, but not the dominant food. For instance, Cuban beans and rice is mostly rice. The Tuscans in Italy are called “mangiafagioli,” which translates to “bean eaters,” because they are known for their bean consumption, but the beans are served on bread, or in pasta, or as a side dish. Okinawans eat a modest amount of soybeans, but not many other legumes that I know of.

I’m interested to learn more. What cultures are you thinking of?

I don't know of any culture today that eats primarily beans or "many cups of beans at every meal". Personally, I probably wouldn't eat "many cups of beans" at one time. I know I'd pay for it. Copious gas. My gut is a fermentation factory. I always eat my beans along with other starches and vegetables. Last night I made red beans and rice. We ate it with sweet potatoes (those went through me like a rocket, btw) and green beans. I make some bean-heavy soups and chili, but I eat them with bread or tortillas or crackers. If I make greens and beans, there's more greens than beans, and I eat that with even more starches. I love pinto beans, but I don't eat them in huge amounts or in isolation. There are always other starches and vegetables going along for the ride. (I like variety on my plate.)

I think beans/peas/lentils have been important across cultures because they store well. They are a reliable and healthy food staple. White rice also stores well and is a reliable food staple. That's probably why it eventually made its way to Cuba.

Some beany links:
http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodpuddings.html#pease
https://www.biblicalarchaeology.org/dai ... ic-israel/
https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/pla ... beans.html

[abit]

...

[Lyndzie]

Abit, there are a couple of misleading items in your information.

Green beans are considered a vegetable, not a bean.

The items you have listed uncooked. The relevant information would be in their cooked form.