Lima Beans- Nutritional and Health Information

August 6, 2009 by Tisha Tolar  
Filed under Nutrition

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Beans have long been know to be an excellent source of health benefits.  Lima beans or butter beans as they are often referred to are no exception.  Lima beans are a member of the legume family and provide a good source of fiber while helping lower cholesterol.  Individuals suffering from high cholesterol might even be able to reduce the amount of medication taken to treat this problem by regularly adding lima beans to their diet.  Diabetics can also benefit from eating lima beans as they naturally help your body balance blood sugar levels.

In addition to being a great source of cholesterol lowering fiber and helping the body balance blood sugar levels, beans are one of the most healthy sources of protein.  The human body needs protein to remain healthy and functioning properly and we generally find protein in red meat or dairy products.  Alternative sources of protein, however often come with high calories and saturated fat.  Lima beans also provide potassium, magnesium, iron and molybdenum- a mineral that helps detoxify sulfites in the body.  If you are taking a vitamin supplement, try to incorporate more lima beans in your diet which are an excellent natural source of many vitamins, especially B vitamins and folate.

Selecting and Preparing Lima Beans
As you can see adding lima beans to your daily diet has many nutritional and health benefits.  There are different varieties of lima beans and they can found fresh, frozen, dried or canned with each having different preparation methods.  Finding fresh lima beans in the United States can be difficult to find if you do not live in the southern states.  In southern states, fresh lima beans are generally found at local farmers markets.  When preparing fresh lima beans you must first shell and rinse beans before cooking or consumption.  Frozen, dried and canned lima beans are readily available throughout the United States.  Dried lima beans must be soaked for at least five hours with most people opting to soak them overnight before cooking.  Remember that dried beans will double in size from soaking so one cup of dried beans will cook up to two cups or more.  There is no need to thaw frozen lima beans before cooking.  Boiling and microwaving remain the most popular method of cooking lima beans.

Warning: Lima beans should never be consumed raw.  When the seed coat is opened a cyanide compound is released that is only eliminated by cooking the bean.  Lima beans like other beans are also highly perishable and should be eaten immediately or refrigerated in a sealed container for up to two days.

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