The String Bean Diet

Eating vegetables, such as string beans, is beneficial for your overall health, but consuming an all-string bean diet isn't ideal. String beans, also known as green beans or snap beans, do provide some nutritional benefits, as they are rich in fiber and certain vitamins and minerals, but the nutritional profile is not robust enough to be the entirety of your diet. While string beans are nutritious, a string bean diet can be as undesirable as any other fad diet.

Calories

String beans are low in calories, with just 31 in each 100 g serving. Because of the low calorie content, you'd have to eat a massive and impractical amount of string beans to reach minimum calorie requirements. Men need to consume at least 1,500 calories daily, which would constitute more than 4,800 g of string beans, while women would have to consume nearly 4,200 g of string beans to reach the minimum calorie requirement of 1,300 per day.

Fat

A drawback of the string bean diet is that it would be very low in fat. Even if you consumed enough string beans to satisfy the minimum calorie requirements, you'd fail to take in adequate levels of this vital nutrient. A man on the string bean diet would eat only 10.5 g of fat, while a woman would consume less than 9.5 g. Your body uses fat to make hormones, absorb nutrients and insulate cells, so the American Heart Association suggests eating 50 to 70 g daily.

Fiber

Dietary fiber is an essential nutrient -- it aids in digestive health and can help manage your blood sugar and cholesterol levels -- and it can also aid in weight loss, as it promotes satiety. A string bean diet would be rich in fiber; men consuming 1,500 calories worth of the beans would take in 129 g, while women would take in 113 g. These amounts are much higher than the daily recommendations, which are 38 g for men and 25 g for women. Too much fiber can cause cramping, intestinal blockage, an inability to absorb minerals and vitamins and diarrhea.

Protein

A string bean diet would be relatively high in protein, which can be helpful for dieting. A man consuming the minimum amount of calories would take in 87 g of protein, while a woman consuming the minimum amount of calories each day would consume about 77 g. According to research published in the October 2004 edition of "Journal of the American College of Nutrition," high-protein diets can be more effective than other diets for weight and fat loss.

Carbohydrates

A string bean diet would be very high in carbohydrates, as each 100 g serving contains about 7 g of this nutrient. Men consuming the suggested minimum calorie intake of 1,500 would end up consuming 336 g, while women eating 1,300 calories daily would take in about 293 g. According to research from the February 2006 issue of "Archives of Internal Medicine," low-carbohydrate diets are preferable to higher carbohydrate diets for weight loss.

Vitamins and Minerals

While string beans offer a variety of vitamins and minerals, they contain inadequate levels of many nutrients. An all-string bean diet would provide low levels of riboflavin, vitamin B6 and thiamin. The diet would also contain no vitamins D and B12 or folic acid.

References

• USDA National Nutrient Database: Beans, Snap, Green, Raw
• PubMed Health; Tips for Losing Weight; October 2009
• American Heart Association; Knowing Your Fats; September 2010
• Mayo Clinic; Dietary Fiber: Essential for a Healthy Diet; November 2009
• FitDay: 6 Health Risks of Eating Too Much Fiber
• "Journal of the American College of Nutrition"; The Effects of High Protein Diets on Thermogenesis, Satiety and Weight Loss: A Critical Review; T.L. Halton, F.B. Hu; October 2004