Kabuli chana in pregnancy: benefits, safety and how to eat it

Cooked properly, yes. Well-cooked kabuli chana belongs in a pregnancy diet, for the folate, iron, protein and fibre it carries, and the ICMR-NIN dietary guidelines name legumes among the good sources of folic acid in pregnancy. The same guidelines also state there is no need to avoid consumption of any specific foods that may be based on wrong food beliefs and taboos, so the guidelines give no reason to skip chana in pregnancy. What pregnancy does change is hygiene and preparation: the chana must be soaked, fully cooked and eaten fresh, and the portion kept sensible.

Per 100 g of dry kabuli chana (USDA FoodData Central): 557 mcg of folate, 4.31 mg of iron, 20.5 g of protein and 12.2 g of fibre. One cooked katori, from about 30 g of the dry grain, gives roughly 167 mcg of folate, 1.3 mg of iron, 6.2 g of protein and 3.7 g of fibre.

Put the numbers in perspective. Pregnancy raises the need for iron and folic acid, and the WHO's antenatal care recommendation is a daily supplement of 30 to 60 mg of elemental iron and 400 mcg of folic acid, with the folic acid started as early as possible, ideally before conception, to protect against neural tube defects. Food is not a substitute for that supplement: the katori's 167 mcg of folate and 1.3 mg of iron are a contribution to the diet, and the supplement is what the WHO recommends. The guidelines add that the bioavailability of iron from plant foods is poor compared with flesh foods, and that vitamin C foods such as guava, orange and lemon improve iron absorption from plant foods, so a squeeze of lemon over a chana salad is an easy pairing.

The recommended food table for undernourished pregnant women in the Dietary Guidelines for Indians puts pulses and legumes at 90 g a day, a figure that covers every pulse eaten in the day; one katori of cooked chana, from 30 g dry, is one part of it, and your doctor can say how much suits you. The same guidelines say consumption of pulses would contribute in meeting the recommended daily allowance of proteins.

Soak the chana 8 to 12 hours or overnight, discard the soaking water and pressure cook until soft: the guidelines call boiling and pressure cooking the best way to improve the nutritional quality of pulses, since the anti-nutritional factors are destroyed and protein becomes more available. A well-cooked chana curry, a kabuli chana khichdi or a boiled chana salad are the everyday forms; the soak, including the two-hour quick method, is in our guide to soaking kabuli chana.

Chana is blamed for gas, and the usual explanation is its galacto-oligosaccharides, which escape digestion in the small intestine and are fermented in the colon, with gas as the release. A 2019 review of pulse tolerance notes this explanation has recently been questioned, and found that most people who get gas adapt if they keep eating pulses regularly. If gas or bloating is troubling you, mention it to your doctor. The guidelines point to the same foods for the other common complaint, constipation in pregnancy: intake of fibre-containing foods like whole grain cereals, pulses and vegetables, together with enough fluids. On iron, the guidelines are specific: beverages like tea bind dietary iron and make it unavailable, so tea should be avoided before, during or soon after a meal.

Two further cautions are about other foods. Raw or lightly cooked sprouts are on the US FDA's avoid list for pregnant women, because bacteria can multiply while seeds sprout, so stick to fully cooked chana rather than raw sprouted forms. And under the guidelines, excess intake of caffeine-containing beverages like coffee and tea adversely affects fetal growth and should be minimized.

• Undercooked or raw chana. Pressure cook until soft: a 2019 review of pulse constituents notes soaking and proper cooking eliminate the biological activity of lectins, and the guidelines call boiling and pressure cooking the best preparation for pulses.
• Roadside or reheated chana chaat that has sat out; the guidelines say extra care needs to be exercised to avoid food-borne illness by following food safety practices.
• Supplements skipped for food. The WHO's iron and folic acid supplement is the plan; the katori is not a replacement for it.
• A heavy fried chole with bhature as a habit. Occasional is fine; daily fried bread with a heavy gravy is not the pregnancy plate.

For storage, buying and the rest of the kabuli chana basics, the hub covers the grain itself.

Pregnancy care is individual: anaemia, gestational diabetes, weight gain targets and your supplement plan all sit with your doctor. If you have gestational diabetes, the University of Sydney's about-GI page quotes the FIGO guidance that lower-GI foods are the direction for that diagnosis, and boiled chana's mean GI of 23 fits, but the portion still belongs in your meal plan, not outside it. Agree how much chana, and everything else, with the person managing your pregnancy: talk to your doctor or dietitian.

Is kabuli chana good for health?

Yes, as part of a varied Indian plate. Per 100 g dry it carries 20.5 g of protein, 12.2 g of fibre, 4.31 mg of iron and 557 mcg of folate (USDA FoodData Central), and the ICMR-NIN guidelines count legumes among the good sources of folic acid. Soaked and pressure cooked it is an everyday pulse; what the evidence does and does not support is on our page on kabuli chana benefits and side effects.

Does kabuli chana cause gas?

It can. Chickpeas contain galacto-oligosaccharides, sugars the small intestine leaves undigested, and the colon's fermentation of them is the usual explanation for the gas. Most people who get gas find it settles if they keep eating pulses regularly, according to a 2019 review of pulse tolerance. Cook the chana fully soft either way: the same review notes that soaking and proper cooking remove lectin activity.

Why chickpeas cause bloating?

Bloating after chickpeas is usually put down to their galacto-oligosaccharides, which the colon ferments into gas, but a 2019 review of pulse tolerance notes that this explanation has recently been questioned. The review adds that how much discomfort someone gets appears to depend partly on inherited factors. If bloating in pregnancy is frequent or painful, take it to your doctor rather than cutting pulses on your own.

Does chickpeas have protein?

Yes: 20.5 g per 100 g of dry kabuli chana, and a single cooked katori gives around 6.2 g of it. The protein is short of one amino-acid family: a 2012 review in the British Journal of Nutrition records that chickpea has the essential amino acids in significant amounts except the sulphur-containing ones, which cereals in the daily diet can complement; chana with rice or roti does just that.

Which chickpeas are best black or white?

For pregnancy, either works; pick by the dish. The white kabuli type is the larger, creamy white one used for chole and salads, while the black kala chana carries more fibre and more iron, per IFCT 2017 for the dark type against the USDA record for the white. Soak and cook both fully; the two types are set side by side on our kabuli chana vs chickpeas page.