The Ultimate Guide to the 5 Healthiest Beans You Need in Your Diet

In 2025, focusing on health is more important than ever. One simple way to boost your nutrition is by eating more beans and lentils. These foods are full of fiber, protein, iron, and magnesium, making them some of the healthiest options available. Despite their benefits, beans and lentils are often ignored at the grocery store. This might be because they usually come in cans or were jokingly called the “musical fruit” in the past. But now, it’s time for beans to shine.

Recently, the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee released a report suggesting we should eat more beans and lentils. They found that 83% of people don’t eat the recommended 1 to 4 cups of cooked beans, peas, and lentils each day. With National Bean Day on January 6, it’s a great time to add more beans and lentils to your meals.

Health Benefits of Beans

Beans and lentils provide many important nutrients, including protein, fiber, iron, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, folate, zinc, and selenium. They have very little saturated fat, minimal sodium, and a low glycemic index. Studies show that eating beans can lead to several health benefits:

• Heart Health: Eating beans may help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol and protect against heart disease.
• Cancer Prevention: Beans might help reduce the risk of colorectal cancer.
• Blood Sugar Control: Even though they contain carbohydrates, beans can help prevent diabetes and assist with blood sugar management.
• Weight Management: People who eat beans regularly often weigh less and have healthier waist-to-hip ratios compared to those who don’t.
• Better Diet Quality: Those who include beans in their diet tend to consume more fiber, iron, calcium, and potassium.

Top 5 Beans to Include in Your Diet

There are many types of beans, each with unique nutrients and flavors. Here are five beans that are especially nutritious:

1. Lentils: Half a cup of cooked lentils provides 8 grams of fiber, 9 grams of protein, and several vitamins and minerals, including B vitamins, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, and manganese.How to Enjoy Them: Add lentils to salads and soups, use them in curries, make lentil burgers, or replace meat in dishes like Bolognese sauce.
2. Black Beans: Half a cup of canned black beans offers 6 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein, along with nutrients like iron, magnesium, manganese, folate, and thiamine.How to Enjoy Them: Black beans are versatile; you can add them to salads, tacos, mash them into baked goods, make black bean burgers, or include them in quesadillas.
3. Cannellini Beans: Half a cup of canned cannellini beans provides 5 grams of fiber, 6 grams of protein, and 15% of the daily value for iron.How to Enjoy Them: These beans are great in soups like minestrone because they hold their shape. You can also blend them with olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, and herbs to make a dip similar to hummus.
4. Chickpeas (Garbanzo Beans): Half a cup offers 6 grams of fiber and 7.5 grams of protein, plus iron, magnesium, phosphorus, folate, copper, and manganese.How to Enjoy Them: Chickpeas can be added to salads, mashed for sandwiches, blended into hummus, or roasted with chocolate for a sweet snack.
5. Edamame (Young Soybeans): With 11 grams of protein per half cup, edamame is a protein-rich bean. They also provide 4 grams of fiber and more than 10% of the daily recommended intake for folate, vitamin K, iron, magnesium, and phosphorus.How to Enjoy Them: Eat edamame as a snack, add them to stir-fries, or use them in rice bowls. They’re a hearty substitute for animal protein in many dishes.

Choosing the Right Beans

When adding beans to your diet, both dried and canned options are healthy. Look for products without added sauces or salt. If you choose canned beans, check for “BPA-free” labels, as BPA is a chemical that can be harmful. Most cans are now BPA-free, but it’s good to confirm.

Beans and lentils are affordable, versatile, and packed with nutrients like fiber, iron, calcium, and potassium. Regularly eating them has been linked to many health benefits. So, next time you’re planning meals, consider making beans and lentils a regular part of your diet.

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