The legumes include beans, such as black, kidney and garbanzo, split and yellow peas and lentils. Boiling is a common way to cook your lentils since they often come dried, and some ways to eat them are as a side dish, in lentil soup or in curries or stews. As part of a healthy diet, legumes may lower your risk for chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, according to the University of Michigan Health System.
Calories, Fat and Protein
A cup of boiled lentils provides 230 calories, less than 1 g fat and almost no saturated fat. Lentils are rich in protein, with 17.6 g per cup. Unlike the protein in soy or animal foods, the protein in lentils and other legumes is not complete. This means that it does not provide each of the amino acids that you need to get from your diet. However, you can make a complete protein by eating lentils with other plant-based sources of protein, such as wheat bread with lentil soup, according to the University of Michigan Health System.
Carbohydrates
A cup of boiled lentils has 40 g total carbohydrates, including 3.6 g natural sugars. Like other legumes, boiled lentils are rich sources of dietary fiber, with 15.6 g, or more than 60 percent of the daily value. Dietary fiber lowers your cholesterol levels, reduces your risk for constipation and may help you control your weight because it is a filling nutrient, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Potassium and Sodium
Boiled lentils provide 731 mg potassium and only 4 mg sodium. You may be able to prevent the development of high blood pressure, or lower your blood pressure if it is already high, by eating a high-potassium, low-sodium diet, according to the 2010 Dietary Guidelines from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Healthy adults should get at least 4,700 mg potassium and no more than 2,300 mg sodium per day. Your lentils will be higher in sodium if you boil them with salt or eat them in a salty soup.
Iron, Zinc and Folate
A cup of boiled lentils provides 6.6. mg iron, or 37 percent of the daily value, and 2.5 mg zinc, or 17 percent of the daily value. Folate is necessary for heart health because it lowers levels of dangerous homocysteine in your blood, according to the Linus Pauling Institute Micronutrient Information Center. Pregnant women or women who may become pregnant need to be especially careful to get adequate folate to prevent neural tube birth defects. Boiled lentils have 358 mg folate, or 90 percent of the daily value.
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