It's International Year of Pulses!
IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.fao.org/pulses-2016/communications-toolkit/download-iyp-logo/en/
Did you know that the United Nations General Assembly has declared 2016 to be International Year of Pulses? This is in recognition of the important role played by pulses and legumes in global nutrition, but also their contribution to sustainability and food security.
So what is a pulse? It's basically just a dried bean or pea.
These are the key messages for the year:
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As nutrition nerd and shameless foodie I've been having lots of fun with International Year of Pulses. My husband and I have made an ongoing project of bringing home as many different types of legumes and pulses as we can find and experimenting in the kitchen!
And I've also dived deep into research* into their health benefits - and also the concerns I've heard about in the media and blogosphere. I'll be posting a separate article on this soon, but for now let's just say that I'm a BIG fan of pulses and legumes because they are both healthy and delicious - if you know how to prepare them right!
IMAGE SOURCE: http://www.fao.org/pulses-2016/communications-toolkit/promotional-material/en/
I will be sharing some of my favorite pulse and legume recipes this year, but in the meantime check out the Pulse Pledge website for some great info, recipes and resources!
And for more information on International Year of Pulses, check these out:
* Just so you know, when I talk about doing research, I mean reading the peer reviewed scientific literature, not surfing around the net to see what assorted other "health bloggers" have to say. I also mean searching widely, having regard to the hierarchy of scientific evidence, not cherry-picking one or two obscure studies that support my own personal beliefs. M'kay?