This kind of beans is perfect to eat in spring, but some people should eat it with caution

Ruan Guangfeng

Broad beans are a kind of legumes in late spring and early summer. They can be eaten as staple food, side dish or vegetable, and are rich in nutritional value. However, some people should be careful when eating them, because they may induce favism.

What nutrients does broad bean have

Broad beans, also known as Luohan beans, Hu beans, and orchid beans, are rich in high protein, high dietary fiber and low fat content.

Broad beans have a protein content of about 30%, which is a good source of protein for vegetarians. Its rich dietary fiber helps promote digestive health, prevent constipation and maintain satiety. At the same time, it is also rich in various vitamins and minerals, including folic acid, potassium, magnesium, etc. It is also rich in antioxidants, such as polyphenols, which help reduce the damage of free radicals to the body. In addition, it has a low fat content and is suitable for people who need to control fat intake.

Broad beans have excellent nutritional value. Whether they are fresh beans fried as vegetables, or dried beans made into spiced broad beans, spicy beans, strange-flavored beans, fried broad beans and broad bean chili sauce, they are all good choices.

However, although broad beans are good, some people cannot eat them. Be careful of favism!

What is favism?

Favism, also known as glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, is a hereditary disease that is most common in boys under the age of 10.

G6PD is an important enzyme responsible for maintaining the antioxidant capacity in red blood cells and protecting them from oxidative damage. However, if people who lack this enzyme eat broad beans, it will cause red blood cells to rupture, thus causing hemolytic anemia.

Common symptoms of favism include: Hemolysis: After eating broad beans or related foods, red blood cells will suffer oxidative damage in the body, leading to hemolysis, that is, the red blood cells rupture and release hemoglobin; Anemia: Due to the destruction of red blood cells caused by hemolysis, anemia may occur, that is, the hemoglobin level decreases; Jaundice: The hemoglobin released by hemolysis breaks down in the body to produce bilirubin, causing yellowing of the skin and eyes; Other symptoms: including headache, nausea, vomiting, etc.

Boys should pay special attention to favism

According to the report "Detection of G6PD gene mutation and X chromosome inactivation deviation in a favism genetic family", about 400 million people in the world suffer from favism, which is common in Mediterranean coastal countries, Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America. In my country, the incidence of favism is about 5.5%, and the incidence in the south is higher than that in the north, especially in Guangdong, Yunnan and Sichuan.

Favism has a very obvious family inheritance phenomenon, and about 41.3% of patients have a family history of inheritance. Moreover, the incidence rate of this disease in men is significantly higher than that in women, about 90% of which occurs in men, and 2/3 of them are children under 3 years old.

This is because the cause of favism is G6PD deficiency, which is an X-chromosome incomplete dominant genetic disease. The male sex chromosomes are composed of an X chromosome and a Y chromosome, of which the X chromosome comes from the mother. If the mother happens to carry the disease-causing gene on this chromosome, then the boy will suffer from favism, which means that boys born to mothers with favism have a 50% chance of being patients and a 50% chance of being healthy. For girls, half are healthy and half are carriers. Carriers rarely get sick or the symptoms are very mild and are often ignored. This is why most favism patients are concentrated in boys.

Prevention of favism is the key

According to the "Current Status and Prospects of G6PD Deficiency Research in Sichuan Province", there is currently no special treatment for favism. Only effective prevention can prevent the occurrence of favism.

Because this disease is hereditary, if one of the parents has favism, then you need to be especially careful. When you first feed your baby broad beans, you should pay special attention to the child's reaction. If the child shows symptoms such as general discomfort, fatigue, dark urine color, etc. after eating broad beans, you must take the child to the hospital in time. If you have been diagnosed with favism, it will accompany you for life and will not get lighter or disappear, so you need to pay special attention.

Eating broad beans and broad bean products is the main cause of the disease, accounting for about 80%. Therefore, if you find that your child has favism, do not feed him broad beans and related products, including bean paste, orchid beans, strange-flavored beans, etc. When buying other foods, you should also pay special attention to whether the food contains broad beans in the ingredient list.

There are many ways to ingest broad beans, including eating raw, cooked, dried, fresh broad beans and broad bean products. Breast milk from mothers who have eaten broad beans can also cause illness in infants. Therefore, if the baby has favism, the mother should not eat broad beans and their products during breastfeeding.

Moreover, favism does not necessarily require eating broad beans to cause it. Some people may even develop the disease by smelling the fragrance of broad beans or touching broad bean pollen. Therefore, during the broad bean flowering, fruiting or harvesting season, children should also be avoided from visiting broad bean fields.

(The author is the deputy director of the Kexin Food and Health Information Exchange Center and a member of the expert committee of the China Internet Rumor Refutation Platform)