14 DAY TRIAL // Scientists announced that they have developed super nutritious and flatulence-free beans. Marisela Granito of Simon Bolivar University in Caracas, Venezuela and her colleagues have identified 2 bacteria, Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum, that can be added to beans so that they can cause as little discomfort as possible.
Flatulence is a gas released by bacteria that live in the large intestine when they break down food, like a soluble fiber. The fermented beans were fed to rats and their droppings were analyzed to make sure that the beans were digested and kept their nutritional value.
Venezuelan researchers found that boosting the natural fermentation process by adding the bacteria called Lactobacillus casei leads to a reduction in the amount of these indigestible wind-causing compounds.
"Legumes, and particularly Phaseolus vulgaris or beans, are an important source of nutrients, especially in developing countries. In spite of being part of the staple diets of these populations, their consumption is limited by the flatulence they produce," researchers stated.
Soluble fiber was reduced by 66% and the amount of another flatulence-causing substance called raffinose by 88.6%. The amount of insoluble fiber, which help the digestive system get rid of toxins, increased by 97.5%.
"Given that flatulence is one of the main limiting factors for the consumption of this important foodstuff, the implementation of processes which allow for nutritious and non-flatulence-producing beans to be obtained would be interesting," the team of researchers concluded.