Belonging to Fabaceae family, pigeon peas or cajanus cajan are legumes. People belonging to south Asia consume pigeon peas more. In Tamil it is called as thuvaram paruppu, in Marathi it is toor dal, in Telugu it is kandi pappu etc. One important point to be noted is the small and oval shaped legumes are found in different colours like yellow, brown etc. Being good source of proteins when compared to other legumes in the family, it is essential for us to consume pigeon peas without fail. There are many vitamins, proteins, minerals, dietary fibre, antioxidants etc present in the pigeon peas.
When pigeon peas are consumed by us we could get these below mentioned health benefits.
Anaemia is prevented:
Pigeon peas have got huge amounts of folate content in them and this folate helps in preventing anaemia in us. Neural defects could be avoided in unborn babies. It is said that a single cup of pigeon peas every day could help us from the onset of anaemia.
Helps in weight loss:
Many suffer from excess body weight. The intake of pigeon peas could provide them a superb solution. The presence of dietary fibres in pigeon peas does superbly in this. By taking pigeon peas we could feel full and this could make us to eat less. There would be better functioning of our metabolism and this is due to nutrients and dietary fibre content of pigeon peas.
Superb energy booster:
The vitamin B plus riboflavin and niacin in pigeon peas does amazingly by enhancing carbohydrate metabolism and prevents unnecessary storage of fats. Energy levels in us get boosted.
Blood pressure gets regulated:
The presence of potassium in pigeon peas play huge role in regulating BP in us. Potassium is vasodilator and it reduces the constriction of the blood vessels and lowers BP. It is revealed that intake of pigeon peas is good for those having hypertension.
Reduces inflammation:
This is one important health benefit we could get by the intake of pigeon peas. The anti-inflammatory properties of pigeon peas play important roles in reducing the swellings and other inflammatory issues in us. It is said that a paste made from mashed pigeon peas could be used to treat piles also.
Digestion is improved:
Bulking up of stools, regular bowel movements etc could be possible due to intake of pigeon peas. Issues like constipation, bloating, cramping, diarrhoea etc are avoided in us. The dietary fibre in pigeon peas helps in good digestion.