“Beans and lentils help you lose weight.”
Beans and lentils do help with weight loss, but only a little: in trials, about one serving a day took off under a pound over 6 weeks.
Beans, lentils, chickpeas and peas are a filling, low-cost food that gives weight loss a small nudge. They are worth eating for their fiber and protein even when the scale barely moves.
Swap beans or lentils into one regular meal this week, in place of some of the meat or cheese, and add more gradually if your gut is not used to the fiber.
Safety note: A sudden large fiber increase can cause gas or discomfort. Rinse canned beans to reduce sodium, cook dry kidney beans fully, and adjust potassium or phosphorus only if a clinician has prescribed restrictions for kidney disease.
Talk to a healthcare professional if: you have kidney disease, significant digestive symptoms, trouble getting enough food, a history of an eating disorder, or nutrition needs related to a medicine; a dietitian can help.
A meta-analysis of 21 randomized trials found that about one daily serving of beans, lentils, chickpeas or peas led to a small but consistent weight loss, and a separate analysis found they make meals more filling. The trials were short, about 6 weeks, and the loss was under a pound, which is why confidence is Moderate.
Beans and lentils do help with weight loss, but only a little: in trials, about one serving a day took off under a pound over 6 weeks. Across 21 trials of 940 people, diets with about one daily serving of pulses (beans, lentils, chickpeas or dry peas) led to about 0.75 pound more weight loss than diets without them, including in diets that were not meant to cut calories.
The typical amount in the trials was about 4.5 ounces of pulses a day, and the trials lasted a median of 6 weeks, so the long-term size of the effect has not been tested. The results were consistent from trial to trial.
Do beans and lentils help you feel fuller?
Yes. In 9 short feeding trials, meals with pulses made people feel about 31 percent fuller than matched meals without them, though people did not eat less at their next meal.
- Kim SJ, de Souza RJ, Choo VL, et al. Effects of dietary pulse consumption on body weight: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2016;103(5):1213-1223. doi:10.3945/ajcn.115.124677. PMID:27030531
- Li SS, Kendall CW, de Souza RJ, et al. Dietary pulses, satiety and food intake: a systematic review and meta-analysis of acute feeding trials. Obesity. 2014;22(8):1773-1780. DOI: 10.1002/oby.20782. PMID: 24820437