Pulse Canada has received the initial results of a $3.2 million exploration into the health benefits of eating peas, lentils, chickpeas and beans.
“The preliminary findings look very positive,” said Julianne Curran, the organization’s market innovation manager.
Pulse Canada has spent $1.5 million in federal government funding on six studies in Canada and the United States. The remaining $1.7 million will be spent on publicizing the results after the projects wrap up this spring.
The group recently hosted a Pulse Food Symposium in Toronto, where 190 food manufacturers, processors, researchers and health industry professionals heard about the preliminary findings.
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Curran said a study investigating whether eating pulses can reduce cardiovascular disease look particularly promising. Researchers fed subjects half a cup of mixed pulses a day for eight weeks.
“They found that after consuming the pulse diet they had a lower body mass index, they had lower total cholesterol and lower LDL cholesterol,” she said.
The study is still attempting to determine if the diet improved blood vessel function.
Another study in the U.S. showed eating pulses can assist in weight loss, while one in Canada determined that eating a pre-exercise meal of lentils improved exercise performance and endurance in soccer athletes.
“Hopefully, once the results are out and finalized, we’ll be able to build a real campaign around pulse consumption and promote these evidence-based health benefits,” Curran said, although she noted the studies wouldn’t provide enough evidence to support a Health Canada health claim.
Curran said the Toronto symposium was a good place to start building momentum for a campaign designed to increase North American consumption of pulses.
It allowed processors to network with food manufacturers and exposed dietitians and nutritionists to research findings and new products such as gluten-free crackers made with chickpea flour, beverages containing pulse proteins and low saturated fat meatballs that incorporated pureed chickpeas.
