Pulses: Dawn of a new superfood

Pulses, the dry seeds of legume family plants such as peas, beans, lentils or chickpeas, are easy to prepare and have all sorts of positive health effects. They've been credited with helping to prevent diabetes, reduce the risk of heart disease and help with cholesterol and weight loss. But despite their potential to rapidly improve nutrition in the developing world, they are often overlooked.

The list of benefits doesn't end there. Pulses are high in dietary fiber, are a source of low-fat protein and are gluten-free. They are also packed with essential micronutrients such as iron, potassium, magnesium and zinc, making them a great food source for people who have limited access to nutritious foods.

In Congo, Rwanda, India and several other developing countries HarvestPlus is growing iron-biofortified beans. This variety of bean is reported to have an even greater nutritional value than commonly grown bean varieties. In regions where close to one-third of people are affected by the micronutrient deficiency, anemia, the beans can provide consumers with up to 45% of their daily needs.

Mywish Maredia, a professor of development economics at Michigan State University, argues that pulses are "uniquely positioned" to help tackle the challenges faced by the developing world. Not only do they provide adequate nutrition and health benefits, they are also cheap, easier to source and environmentally less damaging than meat and other agricultural industries.

The UN reports that it costs nearly one-fifth the price to source an equivalent amount of protein from pulses as it does from milk. Furthermore, only around 160 liters (40 gallons) of water is needed to produce 500 grams (1 pound) of pulses, compared with some 7,000 liters for the same amount of beef.

Pulses are often grown in regions without access to irrigation or chemical fertilizers, meaning they can provide nutritional benefits to people unable to grow other crop types that would offer similar health advantages. What's more, pulses are drought and frost-tolerant, with the ability to grow in harsher environments than most stable crops.

Pulses have been part of the human diet for millennia. Archaeological digs in Anatolia — modern-day Turkey — have found signs of chickpea and lentil production (seen above, in Italy) dating back to 7,000-8000 B.C. Beans and other pulses have been important for many cultures. They've been found in Egyptian and Aztec tombs, and black beans were used by ancient Romans to banish specters of the dead.

An integral part of human culture, pulses have inevitably turned up in works of art. Rangoli, an art from that originated in India, uses materials such as colored sand, flower petals, rice, beans or lentils to create intricate and beautiful patterns on the ground. In this photo, Indians show their support for the ongoing farmers' protests with a huge Indian flag made of rice and lentils.

Pulses are highly versatile and can be eaten for breakfast, lunch and sometimes for dessert. They can be added as a healthy alternative in cakes, snacks and even some drinks. This candy favorite, the jelly bean, has nothing to do with pulses — but the shape was inspired by the diet of Americans in the 1800s, which was primarily made up of beans and homegrown vegetables.