Dietitian Says Eating Gobɛ Doesn’t Give Flat Tummy As Reported

Nana Kofi Owusu, a Registered Dietitian and Lecturer at the University of Health and Allied Sciences has debunked the study that found that eating Gari, Beans, Red oil and fried ripe plantain, a Ghanaian delicacy known as “Gobɛ” gives a flat tummy.

In a Column on Graphic Online, Nana Kofi admitted that the low carbohydrate content and high fibre content make the meal a good food for weight loss.

He also said that there are substantive benefits in eating the individual elements of the meal.

“It is a fact that beans is high in soluble fibre, protein and some carbohydrates, which include Oligosaccharides. Oligosaccharides are not well digested by the body, hence will go to feed the good gut bacteria in the colon for protection. The soluble fibre also helps in blood cholesterol control, ease in digestion and bulking of faecal matter to prevent constipation. The presence of non-haem iron in beans, as well as the high-quality iron in the boiled egg or fish that is added also make it useful in red blood cell production and quality”.

The lecturer, however, noted that it is “misleading” and “erroneous” that eating the meal leads to a loss of pot belly.

“On the contrary, if it is eaten the way it is usually done, it will rather lead to weight gain and consequent increase in pot belly, since the excess calories will be stored in the liver and abdomen as fat.”

This, he said, is due to the presence of a large quantity of oil in the meal.

“However, when the oil is reduced to the barest minimum and the plantain is shallow fried or roast to reduce or eliminate the oil content, the calories (energy content) will be reduced.

“Also, if the portions of beans, gari and plantain are moderated to one’s physical activity level, age and physiological state, there is the possibility of reducing the caloric content which can help in weight loss”, he scripted.

He advised the public to instead choose boiled or roasted ripe plantain when eating gari and beans to reduce calories.

Source: opemsuo.com/Hajara Fuseini