Green Gram Health Benefits Overviews

By: http://www.OWorking.com 

Overview
Green gram, also known as mung bean, has been cultivated exclusively for the seeds that are contained in the plant's pod. Used since ancient times in Indian and Chinese cuisine, mung beans have migrated throughout the Far East and Southeast Asia. Nutritious and mild in flavor, green gram takes on the flavor of the spices and other ingredients added to it. When mung beans are dried and halved, they go by various names, including green gram dal.

The Mung Bean
Green gram is a small, oval-shaped bean that you can cook before or after soaking. Once cooked, the bean is sweet and soft in texture, and it is easily digested, so it doesn't produce flatulence like many other legumes. The mung bean has an olive green husk and a dark-mustard-colored interior. The dried bean is often split to expedite cooking and sold as green dal. If it has been hulled before splitting, only the yellow endosperm remains, and the bean goes by various names including moong dal and mung dal. Green gram dal, which still has the husks, maintains its shape better when cooking, while moong dal becomes soft and mushy like porridge. Because of their soft consistency, dals are used for stews, soups, salads and desserts.

Low-Fat Protein
Like other beans, the mung bean is a rich source of low-fat protein. One cup of mature, boiled beans contains 14 g of protein, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Unlike many other plant-based sources of protein, mung beans have a wide amino-acid profile, providing at least some of every type of amino acid. Green gram dal contains virtually no trans or saturated fats. It does contain a small amount of healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat.
High Fiber
One cup of cooked green gram dal has a whopping 15 g of fiber. It contains both insoluble and water-soluble fiber, which together yield varied benefits. Fiber scrubs your intestinal tract as it makes its way through your digestive system. It fills you up, sating your appetite. Water-soluble fiber reduces LDL cholesterol -- the "lousy" cholesterol -- and reduces risk for cardiovascular disease.
Low-Glycemic
Because of the high amount of fiber, green gram dal is considered low-glycemic. It digests slowly and gradually releases glucose into your bloodstream, stabilizing your blood sugar. Consumption of low-glycemic foods lower your risk for developing diabetes, and since green gram dal prolongs the release of sugar into your bloodstream, it can help curb your post-meal cravings. A study published in 2008 in the "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry" indicates that mung beans might lower blood glucose, triglycerides and cholesterol and might improve glucose tolerance



Green Gram - The Popular Healthy Sprout

During my younger days, my mother used to feed me dishes which had green gram as a major ingredient. She used to say that eating these food kept one healthy and resistant to common ailments. I would have appreciated what she told, much better, if I was aware of the health giving qualities of this wonderful pulse which formed an essential ingredient in all her dishes.

Green gram arose in North-eastern India and there is a long history of its use throughout Asia. Its popularity stems not just from its medicinal and nutritional properties, but also from its adaptability to drought conditions and inferior soils. The nitrogen fixing bacteria in the plant's root help replenish the nitrogen content of the soil, which makes it a valuable inter-crop in rice and sugar cane cultivation.


Health benefits 

Unlike other pulses, green gram is free of flatulence-causing agents. This makes it an acceptable food for convalescents and pleasant weaning food for babies. The protein is especially rich in the amino acid, lysine, but it is somewhat deficient in sulphur-containing amino acids. The seeds are rich in calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium, folate and other B Vitamins. They also contain appreciable amounts of Vitamin C.

Raw seeds are rich in trypsin-inhibitors that block the effects of protein digesting enzymes in the gut. Sprouted green gram has lower amounts of these inhibitors, but the best method to eliminate trypsin inhibitors is boiling. Cooking does not affect the protein profile of this seed.

Food Uses 

Green gram's use in creating dishes is widely prevalent all over India. It is eaither used whole or split into dal. Whole green gram is the most popular sprout worldwide. Green gram in its split form is used to make khichdi, dal, barfi, payasam (a sweet dish) and other sweets. Deep fried and salted moong dal (green gram) is a popular Indian snack. Processed green gram is a common soup base, and gram flour is a common ingredient in many fried snacks.

Medicinal Uses 

Chinese medicine uses green gram as a remedy for oedema, fever, headache and generalised anxiety, and as a diuretic. It is also a folk remedy for arsenic poisoning and other mineral toxins

Green Gram - Natural Benefits and Curative Properties
Botanical Name :: Phasleolus aureus
Indian Name :: Mung
Description
The green gram is one of the most wholesome among pulses in India. It is free from the heaviness and tendency to flatulence, which is associated with other pulses.
Origin and Distribution of Green Gram
This plant is a native of India and since ancient times it has been in cultivation. It is not found in a wild state. It was introduced early into Southern China, Indo-China and Java. It has been introduced in comparatively recent times into East and Central Africa, the West Indies and the United States.
Food Value of Green Gram
The green gram forms a very nutritious article of diet. It is consumed in the form of whole dried seeds and in the form of dal prepared by splitting the seeds in a mill. The sprouted mung beans are a highly nutritious food. The beans are soaked overnight, drained and placed in containers in a dark room. They are sprinkled with water every few hours and the sprouts are ready in about three days. One pound of dry beans gives six to eight pounds of sprouts. There is an amazing increase in nutrients in sprouted beans when compared to their dried embryo.
Green Gram (Whole dried Seeds)*
Food Value
Minerals and Vitamins
Moisture - 10.4%
Calcium - 124 mg
Protein - 24.0%
Phosphorus - 326 mg
Fat - 1.3%
Iron - 7.3mg
Fibre - 4.1%
Small amount of Vitamin B Complex
Minerals - 3.5%
* Values per 100 gm's edible portion
Carbohydrates - 56.7%
Calorific Value - 334
Green Gram (Dal)*
Food Value
Minerals and Vitamins
Moisture - 10.1%
Calcium - 75 mg
Protein - 24.5%
Phosphorus - 405 mg
Fat - 1.2%
Iron - 8.5mg
Fibre - 0.8%
Small amount of Vitamin B Complex
Minerals - 3.5%
* Values per 100 gm's edible portion
Carbohydrates - 59.9%
Calorific Value - 348
Natural Benefits and Curative Properties of Green Gram.
Cooked dal of green gram is a very digestive food for invalid and sick persons. Its regular use during childhood, pregnancy and lactation helps one to get the required nutrition and promote health. It is an aperient i.e. a laxative. when given in large quantities. The soup made from it is the best article of diet after recovery from acute illness.
Applied in the form of powder. it is said to be useful in relieving the heat or burning of the eyes. A poultice of this powder is useful for checking secretion of milk and reducing distention of the mammary glands
Fevers :- Water in which green grams arc soaked is an excellent medicine during cholera, measles, chicken-pox, small-pox, typhoid and all types of fevers. It can be given in a small quantity even during acute phase of appendicitis.
Beauty-Aid :- Flour of the green gram is an excellent detergent and can be used as a substitute for soap. It removes the dirt and does not cause any skin irritation. Its application over the face bleaches the color and gives good complexion. Black gram flour is also used for washing the hair with green gram paste to lengthen hair and prevent dandruff.
Uses of Green Gram
The dried beans are boiled and are eaten whole or after splitting into dhal. They are parched and ground into flour after removal of the testa or the seed-coat. This flour is used in various Indian and Chinese dishes. The green pods are eaten as a vegetable. In China and the United States it is used for bean sprouts