CHICKPEAS - 2nd Trimester - Healthiest Foods for Pregnancy

100 Healthiest Foods To Eat During Pregnancy

2nd Trimester

CHICKPEAS
Also known as garbanzo beans, chickpeas are one of the best foods you can eat during your pregnancy. These tasty beans are full of nutrients to help you and your baby enjoy a healthy pregnancy. Plus, they're easy to add to manny dishes, inclduing salads, pasta, chili, and soups. Oh, and did we mention hummus?

* Population studies have found a positive effect from eating legumes like chickpeas - low rates of cardiovascular disease and obesity.

* When researchers analyzed this data in relation to the risk of death from heart disease, they found that legumes were associated with a whopping 82 percent reduction in risk. Chickpeas and other legumes are a healthy choice for your heart (which is working hard to pump a lot of extra blood these days) and your waistline, so be sure to seek these foods out during your pregnancy and afterward too!

* Chickpeas are packed with lots of nutrients. In a cup of chickpeas your body gets 12 g of dietary fiber, 15 g of protein, more than half of your daily needs of vitamin B6, and about a quarter of your daily needs of iron. Plus your cup of chickpeas contains some choline needed for nerve and brain development.

* A whopping 65% of your daily needs of manganese can be found in just a cup of chickpeas. Manganese is vital to the health of your rapidly growing baby. Manganese helps in skeletal development.

* Selenium, zinc, and copper are minor minerals that we tend to forget about in our nutrient discussions. They're natural antioxidants, so they play a key role in keeping you and your baby safe from damage caused by free radicals, damaging compounds that form in your body. Antioxidants are known to help prevent disease and aging and may also play a role in a healthy pregnancy.

LEGUMES FOR LIFE
The Food Habits in Later Life Study examines the eating habits of people over the age of 70 in four different countries: Japan, Sweden, Australia, and Greece. Beans and other legumes, including chickpeas, emerged as the food most linked to longer life. In fact, legumes were the only food consistently and significantly linked to survival accross all populations.

JONNY'S TASTY TIPS
To keep from having to cook them pravtically forever, you need to soak dried chickpeas for at least 12 and up to 24 hours. Then they'll get soft if you boil them for half an hour. But if you use canned chickpeas, you don't need to cook them at all. Just open a can and rinse them all before adding them to a salad, stew, or curring or using them to make baked or babecued beans.

Chickpeas are used in many kinds of dishes around the world, including Middle Eastern flalfel patties. But you probably know them best in that delicious dip, hummus. Hummus is easy to make in a food processor or pick up a tub (or several) and a package of whole-wheat pita bread next time you're at the store. It's a great dip for carrot sticks, pepper strips, and other raw veggies, too.

Here's another delicious, easy way to cook chickpeas that I picked up from ntoed natural-foods experct Rebecca Wood: Simmer them till tender wiht garlic and toasted cumin seeds for a tasty sensation. No matter how you eat them, chickpeas are a super addition to your pregnancy diet.



PREVIOUS POSTS

Fertility Foods:
ARUGULA: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100458-arugula-healthiest-foods-for-fertility
ASPARAGUS: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/102142-asparagus-fertility-100-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during-pre
BITTER MELON: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/104449-bitter-melon-fertility-healthiest-foods-for-pregnancy

1st Timester:
ALMONDS: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100150-almonds-1st-trimester-healthiest-foods
ANCHOVIES: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100146-anchovies-1st-trimester-healthiest-foods-during-pregnancy
APPLESAUCE: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100145-applesauce-1st-trimester-healthiest-foods
BANANAS: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100464-bananas-1st-trimester-healthiest-foods-during-pregnancy
BROTH: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/101059-broth-1st-trimester-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during-pregn
BROWN RICE: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/102536-brown-rice-1st-trimester-healthies-foods-to-eat-during-p

2nd trimester:
AVOCADO: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100148-avocado-2nd-trimester-healthiest-foods
BASIL: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100147-basil-2nd-trimester-healthiest-foods
CHIA SEEDS: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100153-chia-seeds-2nd-trimester-healthiest-foods
CHAMOMILE: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100496-chamomile-2nd-trimester-healthiest-foods-during-pregnanc
CHERRIES: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/101088-cherries-2nd-trimester-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during-pr
CHICKPEAS:

3rd Trimester:
BLACK BEANS: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100156-black-beans-3rd-trimester-healthiest-foods
CELERY:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/100507-celery-3rd-trimester-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during-preg
SALMON: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/101942-salmon-3rd-trimester-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during-preg
CRANBERRIES: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/102533-craberries-3rd-trimester-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during
CRIMINI MUSHROOMS: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/102730-crmini-mushrooms-3rd-trimester-healthiest-foods-to-eat-d

Pregnancy Complaints:
ACEROLA CHERRIES: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/103294-acerola-cherries-pregnancy-complaints-top-foods-to-eat-d
AGED CHEDDAR CHEESE: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/104792-aged-cheddar-cheese-pregnancy-complaints-healthiest-food?page=1#posts-1447599

Foods for Breast Feeding:
CABBAGE:http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/103295-cabbage-breast-feeding-healthiest-foods-to-eat-during-pr