Beans: Eat more, weigh less

SAN FRANCISCO, April 7 (UPI) -- A U.S. study finds that people who eat beans weigh less than those who don't.

Using data from the National Nutrition and Health Examination Survey 1999-2002 the study found:

-- Adult bean eaters consume less saturated fat than non-bean eaters and have a 22-percent lower risk of obesity;

-- Adult and teen bean eaters have smaller waist sizes -- ¾ inch and 1 inch, respectively;

-- The fiber intake of adult and teen bean eaters is more than one-third higher than non-bean eaters.

"Beans are an excellent source of fiber and previous studies have shown that high-fiber diets may help reduce body weight, so this makes sense," says study author Victor Fulgoni. "They are naturally low in fat and cholesterol-free."

The study, presented at Experimental Biology 2006 in San Francisco, found that adults who eat beans weigh 6.6 pounds less -- yet eat 199 more daily calories -- than adults who don't eat beans. Similar results were found for teenage bean eaters who consume 335 more daily calories but weigh 7.3 pounds less than non-bean-eating teens.