Yellow string beans, also known as yellow snap beans or wax beans, are the mature seed pods of the yellow string bean plant. The beans are not only a delicious vegetable. They are also nutritious, providing essential nutrients including relatively high levels of several important vitamins. These include vitamin K, C, folate, riboflavin and thiamin, as well as smaller amounts of several other vitamins.
Vitamin K
Yellow string beans contain around 20 mcg of vitamin K or 20 percent of the daily recommended intake for this vitamin. The McKinley Health Center at the University of Illinois states that vitamin K place an important role in forming blood clots.
Vitamin C
Also known as ascorbic acid, vitamin C has antioxidant properties that help to reduce the levels of harmful chemicals, known as free radicals, within the body. Vitamin C also assists in the production and maintenance of connective tissues, teeth, gums and in the healing process, according to the University Of Maryland Medical Center. A single cup of cooked yellow string beans hold 12 mg of vitamin C or approximately 15 percent of what the average person should consume in one day.
Folate
The vitamin folate is also provided in yellow string beans. The beans possess 41 mcg of folate or around 10 percent of the daily recommended intake in a 1-cup serving. The Colorado state University extension identifies folate is important for metabolic processes, the production of red blood cells, and the synthesizing of DNA.
Riboflavin
The University Of Maryland Medical Center states that riboflavin works with other B vitamins in the body to promote proper growth and to produce new red blood cells. One cup of cooked string beans possesses 0.12 mg of riboflavin or about 10 percent of what is needed daily.
Thiamin
Thiamin also comes from yellow string beans and a single cup of cooked beans has around 0.1 mg of thiamin. This amount equals around 8 percent of the daily required intake for the average adult. The Colorado state University extension identifies thiamin as being essential for converting food to energy and for the proper function of the nervous system.
Other Vitamins
Yellow string beans also possess several other important vitamins, although in smaller quantities. These include 0.77 mg of niacin at 5 percent, 4 percent of both vitamin B6 at 0.07 mg, vitamin A. at 101 IU, and vitamin E. at 0.56 mg, and 0.09 mg or 2 percent of pantothenic acid per 1-cup serving.
References
- USDA Nutrient Database: Beans, Snap, Yellow, Cooked, Boiled, Drained, with Salt
- Food and Nutrition Board, Institute of Medicine, National Academies: Dietary Reference Intakes
- Colorado State University Extension: Water Soluble Vitamins
- University of Illinois McKinley Health Center: Vitamins and Minerals
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Vitamins - All Information
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