Lysine
Macronutrients
The amino acid that grains lack and that legumes abound in.
It is what explains rice and lentils, semolina and chickpeas, corn and beans: three continents, one same intuition. No need to combine them in the same meal — the day is enough.
Effects and benefits
The amino acid grains lack and legumes abound in. Without it, no solid collagen, and no carnitine, the shuttle that carries fats into the mitochondria to be burned.
Lysine is essential: we cannot make it. In collagen, it serves as the anchor point for the bridges that link fibers together, and vitamin C is what allows them to form: two nutrients for one sturdy tissue. The liver and kidneys also draw carnitine from it.
Adult needs are estimated at 30 mg per kilo per day (WHO, 2007): a serving of lentils covers a good part of it, a bowl of rice much less.
Sources: WHO, FAO, UNU, 2007
Where to find it (27)
- Adzuki bean
- Amaranth (grain)
- Bambara groundnut
- Black bean
- Black chickpea
- Black lentil
- Black soybean
- Broad beans
- Chickpeas
- Cowpea / black-eyed pea
- Fermented tofu
- Flageolet / borlotti bean
- Green / brown lentil
- Lablab bean
- Lima bean
- Lupin
- Peas
- Pistachio
- Pumpkin seeds
- Quinoa
- Red kidney bean
- Red lentil
- Soybeans / edamame
- Split peas / dried green peas
- Tempeh
- Urad bean
- White bean