Research

Mixed

Consuming chickpeas significantly reduces postprandial blood glucose (iAUC) compared to wheat, potatoes, pasta, cheese, rice, and corn in healthy or normoglycemic adults.

Replace high-glycemic sides like white rice, potatoes, or pasta with chickpeas (whole, flour, or puree) to significantly blunt blood sugar spikes. This works best if you are not diabetic, but the mechanism (resistant starch/fiber) benefits everyone. Note that insulin response benefits are less consistent than glucose benefits.

ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
A meta-analysis involving a subset of studies demonstrated that chickpeas were more effective in reducing blood glucose iAUC compared to potatoes and wheat.
Taegwang Nam et al. · Nutrients · 2023

Why this rating

Meta-analysis of RCTs, but high heterogeneity (I2 > 75%) in wheat comparisons and small sample sizes.

Source

Effectiveness of Chickpeas on Blood Sugar: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Taegwang Nam et al. · Nutrients · 2023

DOI 10.3390/nu15214556

Meta-analysis · 6 studiesCited 15×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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