MORPHOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF GREEN LENTILS
Keywords:
Keywords: Legumes, Food security, Nutritive value, Bioactive compounds, Health benefis.Abstract
Anotation: Legumes are indispensable for human diet in respect to their nutritive bioactive molecules and provide all nutritional and physiological beneficial effects on human health. Legumes are rich in proteins, carbohydrates, dietary fiber, vitamins and some valuable phytochemicals, which exhibit important biological activities. Protein-rich pulses are considered a staple food for a large portion of the Indian population, which satisfies everyone's protein and energy demands. Due to their high dietary fiber content and low-fat content, legumes aid in the maintenance of body weight and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Additionally, legumes are a good source of minerals including potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, and iron as well as vitamins like folate, thiamine (vitamin B1), riboflavin (vitamin B2), and niacin (vitamin B3). Moreover, there are various potential health benefits due to phytochemicals, such as phenolics, flavonoids, phytates, lectins, tannins, saponins, oxalates, enzyme inhibitors, phytosterols, and antimicrobial peptides, present in pulses. These phytochemicals have anti-inflammatory, anticancer, anti-microbial, and anti-ulcerative effects. Pulses are often referred to as "poor people's meat" because of their high protein content and low price. This chapter covers the nutritional value, phytochemical composition, health benefits, agricultural production and productivity of legumes.
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