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> Beans are protein-rich, sustainable, and delicious. Why doesn’t the US eat more of them? Because they don’t actually have that much protein. Cooked black bea

> Beans are protein-rich, sustainable, and delicious. Why doesn’t the US eat more of them? Because they don’t actually have that much protein. Cooked black beans are about 9% protein and 25% carbohydrates, whereas chicken breast is about 30% protein and has virtually no carbohydrates.

bsder 3y ago
He's not wrong, people. When people talk about their program for Massive Big Gainz(tm), nobody mentions "beans" for good reason.
- mr_toad 3y ago
  What proportion of the population are making Big Gainz? And what proportion are just getting fat? Because excess protein will just end up as fat.
  - nradov 3y ago
    It's nearly impossible to choke down enough protein to get fat on that macronutrient. I mean I'm sure someone has done it but that's just not a practical concern. The issue with gaining adipose tissue is typically caused by consuming excess carbohydrates and (to a lesser degree) fats that come along with the protein.
- tired-turtle 3y ago
  Most Americans consume more than enough protein and engage far too little exercise. Beans and some walks would do them well.
zaptheimpaler 3y ago
The right metric is protein per calorie. Beans are very high up on that list, just below meat and cheese. Not to mention most people aren't protein-maxing, so even a medium protein food is very good.
- gruez 3y ago
  > The right metric is protein per calorie. Beans are very high up on that list, just below meat and cheese. It's baffling that you claim that "The right metric is protein per calorie", but you fail to mention the fact that meat has 3x the protein per calorie compared to beans[1]. The fact that beans rank "very high up" is irrelevant. [1] https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/173735/nutrients https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/173735/n... [2] https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/171534/nutrients https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/171534/n...
  - zaptheimpaler 3y ago
    you're right, i should have written the definitive and complete 10,000 word treatise on nutrition here. to make sure nothing is missed. in the meantime, i recommend the Sports Nutrition Guidebook by Nancy Clark.
jointpdf 3y ago
What about edamame? Definitely count as beans. Per 100g: 120kcal / 11g protein / 5g fat / 10g carbs / 5g fiber. Plus it’s impossible to stop eating them once you gain momentum.
- Thoreandan 3y ago
  Soy has a bad PR problem despite no proof in tests. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/soy/ https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/soy/
darth_avocado 3y ago
This is actually the biggest problem. It's not that beans don't have protein, it's the amount of it you have to eat to meet your daily requirements. 3 ounces of chicken has the same protein as almost 11 ounces of beans. A cup of beans has about 15g protein. And usually you need 1g/kg of body weight per day. A normal sized adult would then need to eat anywhere from 6-8 cups of beans per day, which if you haven't had beans, is a very tough thing to do. As compared to that, 1-1.5 chicken breast could provide the same amount of protein, which is much easier to consume.
- carabiner 3y ago
  Beans and rice is a subsistence food for millions of people from South Asia to South America, so it has to be working somewhat well. Chatgpt says 3-4 cups of cooked beans is enough to satisfy DRI's. > And usually you need 1g/kg of body weight per day. This is too much unless you're bulking. Not everyone is a tech gym bro.
  - xk_id 3y ago
    It’s disturbing to read “chatGPT says”. An unpredictable, machine algorithm is not an acceptable reference. > This is too much unless you're bulking. Not everyone is a tech gym bro. Body builders actually eat up to 2.5/kg. The bare minimum for normal people is 0.65/kg, however that triggers intensive autophagy and comes at a severe cost in energy levels and performance in general (although some people might tolerate it better).
  - znpy 3y ago
    I stopped reading and assumed you’re wrong at “chatgpt says”, btw. “Chatgpt says” is the 2020 version of “I don't beloeve or consult doctors, i get my medical information from the twitter/tiktok”
- adrianN 3y ago
  > And usually you need 1g/kg of body weight per day Maybe if you're a bodybuilder. For almost everyone that's way more than necessary.
baerrie 3y ago
Protein requirements are vastly overestimated in America compared to plenty of countries where there are long living people eating a lot of carbs and less protein
- teucris 3y ago
  I think humans can do fine on carbs, but I think you’d need to provide a citation stating our expected requirements are “vastly overestimated”. Furthermore, we do all kinds of problematic things to our grains in America.
  - baerrie 3y ago
    Unfortunately dietary science in the US is largely funded by private companies and leans towards their interests. Furthermore, there are very few international studies comparing different diets. Also, i see very few comments on HN with citations bc the comments are for opinionated discourse of facts
    - teucris 3y ago
      That doesn’t mean it’s unreasonable to ask for citations when one could be supplied. E.g. a reference to daily recommended nutrition from other government agencies would have been very useful to this opinionated discussion.

bsder 3y ago

He's not wrong, people. When people talk about their program for Massive Big Gainz(tm), nobody mentions "beans" for good reason.

mr_toad 3y ago
What proportion of the population are making Big Gainz? And what proportion are just getting fat? Because excess protein will just end up as fat.
- nradov 3y ago
  It's nearly impossible to choke down enough protein to get fat on that macronutrient. I mean I'm sure someone has done it but that's just not a practical concern. The issue with gaining adipose tissue is typically caused by consuming excess carbohydrates and (to a lesser degree) fats that come along with the protein.
tired-turtle 3y ago
Most Americans consume more than enough protein and engage far too little exercise. Beans and some walks would do them well.

zaptheimpaler 3y ago

The right metric is protein per calorie. Beans are very high up on that list, just below meat and cheese. Not to mention most people aren't protein-maxing, so even a medium protein food is very good.

gruez 3y ago
> The right metric is protein per calorie. Beans are very high up on that list, just below meat and cheese. It's baffling that you claim that "The right metric is protein per calorie", but you fail to mention the fact that meat has 3x the protein per calorie compared to beans[1]. The fact that beans rank "very high up" is irrelevant. [1] https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/173735/nutrients https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/173735/n... [2] https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/171534/nutrients https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/fdc-app.html#/food-details/171534/n...
- zaptheimpaler 3y ago
  you're right, i should have written the definitive and complete 10,000 word treatise on nutrition here. to make sure nothing is missed. in the meantime, i recommend the Sports Nutrition Guidebook by Nancy Clark.

jointpdf 3y ago

What about edamame? Definitely count as beans. Per 100g: 120kcal / 11g protein / 5g fat / 10g carbs / 5g fiber. Plus it’s impossible to stop eating them once you gain momentum.

Thoreandan 3y ago
Soy has a bad PR problem despite no proof in tests. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/soy/ https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/soy/

darth_avocado 3y ago

This is actually the biggest problem. It's not that beans don't have protein, it's the amount of it you have to eat to meet your daily requirements. 3 ounces of chicken has the same protein as almost 11 ounces of beans. A cup of beans has about 15g protein. And usually you need 1g/kg of body weight per day. A normal sized adult would then need to eat anywhere from 6-8 cups of beans per day, which if you haven't had beans, is a very tough thing to do. As compared to that, 1-1.5 chicken breast could provide the same amount of protein, which is much easier to consume.

carabiner 3y ago
Beans and rice is a subsistence food for millions of people from South Asia to South America, so it has to be working somewhat well. Chatgpt says 3-4 cups of cooked beans is enough to satisfy DRI's. > And usually you need 1g/kg of body weight per day. This is too much unless you're bulking. Not everyone is a tech gym bro.
- xk_id 3y ago
  It’s disturbing to read “chatGPT says”. An unpredictable, machine algorithm is not an acceptable reference. > This is too much unless you're bulking. Not everyone is a tech gym bro. Body builders actually eat up to 2.5/kg. The bare minimum for normal people is 0.65/kg, however that triggers intensive autophagy and comes at a severe cost in energy levels and performance in general (although some people might tolerate it better).
- znpy 3y ago
  I stopped reading and assumed you’re wrong at “chatgpt says”, btw. “Chatgpt says” is the 2020 version of “I don't beloeve or consult doctors, i get my medical information from the twitter/tiktok”
adrianN 3y ago
> And usually you need 1g/kg of body weight per day Maybe if you're a bodybuilder. For almost everyone that's way more than necessary.

baerrie 3y ago

Protein requirements are vastly overestimated in America compared to plenty of countries where there are long living people eating a lot of carbs and less protein

teucris 3y ago
I think humans can do fine on carbs, but I think you’d need to provide a citation stating our expected requirements are “vastly overestimated”. Furthermore, we do all kinds of problematic things to our grains in America.
- baerrie 3y ago
  Unfortunately dietary science in the US is largely funded by private companies and leans towards their interests. Furthermore, there are very few international studies comparing different diets. Also, i see very few comments on HN with citations bc the comments are for opinionated discourse of facts
  - teucris 3y ago
    That doesn’t mean it’s unreasonable to ask for citations when one could be supplied. E.g. a reference to daily recommended nutrition from other government agencies would have been very useful to this opinionated discussion.