Yellow Pea Flour Helpful for Diabetics

The most important priority for people with diabetes is to keep their glucose levels under control. Good blood sugar control helps to reduce the risk of diabetic complications such as heart disease, kidney disease, eye disease, and diabetic-related nerve damage that so many people with diabetes experience. Like most people, diabetics enjoy eating baked goods, but the white flour found in many pastries and other goodies can wreck havoc with their blood sugars. To continue to enjoy some of their favorite desserts, some diabetics bake their own using whole wheat flour. As it turns out, there may be a better alternative for baking diabetic friendly treats – yellow pea flour.

According to a study published in the Journal of Food Science, yellow pea flour may be superior to whole wheat flour for diabetics who want to control their blood sugars. Researchers from the University of Manitoba used whole yellow pea flour or whole wheat flour to make three types of foods – biscotti dipping cookies, banana quick bread, and pasta. After preparing these foods, they tested them on twenty-two healthy men and women for their effects on blood sugar as well as their taste appeal. What did they find?

The researchers found that baked goods prepared with the yellow pea flour caused less of a rise in blood sugar levels than did the foods made with the whole wheat flour. This means that eating foods prepared with yellow pea flour would make it easier for diabetics to control their blood sugar levels since glucose and insulin spikes would be lower after eating them.

What about taste? Did the foods prepared with the yellow pea flour pass the taste test? The twenty-two participants were asked to rate the foods prepared with the yellow pea flour and the whole wheat flour in terms of smell, taste, appearance, and acceptability. The results? The group rated the baked goods made with yellow pea flour highly for taste, texture, and acceptability, but they were less enthusiastic about the smell of the pea flour pasta. Overall, the response was good; suggesting that yellow pea flour would be a good alternative to using white or whole wheat flour in baked goods.

Unfortunately, it’s not easy to find yellow pea flour. Most natural grocery stores don’t carry it, and even fewer mainstream grocery stores have it. There is a website called bonanzle.com that sells yellow pea flour in five pound bags and it can be ordered directly online. Hopefully, this flour will become more widely available as its potential health benefits for diabetics are recognized.