High in protein, high in fiber, rich in antioxidants, and loaded with minerals, the humble bean is a powerhouse food. Studies abound that show positive effects of beans for diabetics and prediabetics. Trading in pastas and regular bread for beans has been shown to lower overall blood sugar, as well as fasting blood sugar, and prevent the post-meal spikes in blood sugar that are so common for insulin-resistant diabetics.
The bean has been blessed with over-the-top levels of fiber—far more than most other foods. These fibers not only can be deducted from the total carbohydrate count, since they don’t raise blood sugar, but they actually work to prevent other foods from spiking your blood sugar as they make their way through the intestines. From myhealingkitchen.com:
Beans also are high in soluble fiber, which binds to carbohydrates and slows their digestion into the bloodstream, preventing wild swings in blood-sugar levels. They also contain generous amounts of resistant starch, which means that beans are less digestible than other carbs in the small intestine, so they move into the large intestine faster. Once there, they behave like a dietary fiber, limiting the sharp rise of glucose levels and insulin that can follow a meal, even one that is filled with refined carbohydrates.
One could write a large book about beans, but for our purposes we focus on the knowledge that you really need to get them in your diet.
First, though, we do need a few words of wisdom about beans. Beans do have significant carbohydrates, and even with their high fiber content, there are still a number of carbs that can raise your blood-sugar level.
Second, canned beans are always going to be worse, in every way, than a bag of dried beans you cook yourself. They will have more salt, often added sugar, and they will affect your blood sugar more. Give up the canned beans and invest a little time working with the dried ones.
Beans are slow to digest, so your blood-sugar levels will take longer to reach their peak after eating beans rather than other foods. When you first try a meal heavy on beans, you should check your blood sugar an hour after you finish your meal, and then check it again in 30 minutes, and then again 30 minutes later (two hours after the meal). You will likely find that it keeps rising a bit in that second hour. But in most cases, if your portion of beans was moderate, your blood sugar should fall within acceptable levels.
Because beans do have a significant amount of carbs (even deducting their fiber) you want to be moderate. A large bowl of beans in a soup with little else but beans is probably not the way you want to go. It is far better to put a more moderate amount of beans over a very low-carb bread. With the low-carb bread as a base you don’t need as many beans to fill you up.
Now by low-carb bread I don’t mean any bread you find on your grocery-store shelf. Even the double-fiber breads are probably going to be too much for you when you add the beans. Remember this simple rule: “Don’t allow two major sources of carbs in the same meal.” Below is a simple recipe for a low-carb bread you can make in your microwave in 90 seconds. The bread’s tiny amount of carbs—about 2 grams—will allow you to enjoy a generous portion of cooked beans on top without straining your pancreas or overloading your blood-sugar-processing system:
Bread in a Bowl
1. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a bowl.
2. Add one egg to melted butter.
3. Mix in 2 tablespoons of flaxseed meal.
4. Mix in 1 tablespoon of soy flour.
5. Mix in small amount of baking powder.
6. Mix everything very thoroughly.
7. Mix in 1 packet of stevia.
8. Cook in the bowl in a microwave for 1 minute 30 seconds.
9. Now pour a generous portion of your cooked beans all over the bread and enjoy. When I first enjoyed this meal I could hardly wait to test my blood sugar an hour later to see if this was going to be an acceptable food. When the results were well within the limits I set for myself (145 mg/dl or lower) I knew I could start enjoying this as one of my go-to lunches. It was a great day for me! And when I found out that my wife could cook a mean lentil soup that also proved acceptable, I was doubly blessed!
While most beans are pretty close in terms of total carbs, there are significant differences in their percentage of fiber, and therefore the net grams of carbs. Below is a table of some of the common types of beans you will find on your grocer’s shelves. You will notice that some are far lower in net carbs than others. (Pinto beans can vary a lot, depending on the brand you buy). Naturally you should gravitate to the beans that have the higher fiber and the lower net carbs. The values below are based on 1/4 cup of dried beans. You would do well to eat primarily those beans that have a net carb gram value in the single digits.
