Peanut butter is healthy – if you follow this rule 1

IT’S NOT COMPLETELY time to eat a meal, but you are hungry. What will do? Yeah, probably a big dollop or two of peanut butter.

The nutrient-dense pantry staple is a popular food for endurance athletes and weightlifters. Apart from being extremely tasty, it is also a boon for healthy eating.

“Peanut butter, especially when it’s just ground peanuts, is an extremely healthy food, high in healthy fiber, monounsaturated fats so good for our hearts, and high in plant-based protein that supports muscle health” , declares Dana Ellis Hunnes Ph.D., RD., author of Recipe for survival.

Eating peanut butter can even help you stay full and regulate blood sugar. “People who eat peanut butter are no heavier than their peers who don’t eat peanut butter, and may even often weigh less because they tend to eat fewer calories throughout the day and also tend to snack on healthier foods in general,” says Ellis Hunnes. .

Paired with fruits, vegetables, or whole-grain breads/crackers, peanut butter has the right mix of healthy fats, carbs, and protein to keep you going for several hours.

Here’s the scoop on everything you wanted to know about peanut butter and your health.

What is Peanut Butter?

The name itself is pretty self-explanatory: peanut butter is a butter-like spread made from peanuts.

Specifically: “Peanut butter is made from dry-roasted peanuts that are then ground. In the past, peanut butter contained additional ingredients to preserve shelf life and mix all the ingredients well (emulsifier),” says Blanca Garcia, RDN, Nutrition Specialist of MIDSS.

You can, of course, easily buy peanut butter without added sugars, preservatives or emulsifiers.

“Typically, you can get peanut butter as a smooth spread or a spread with peanut pieces. The most common peanut butter often contains 10% salt, added sugars, hydrogenated vegetable oils, and emulsifiers to keep all the ingredients blended,” says Garcia. “For the smooth style, ingredients can be added to create a thick paste that spreads easily.”

Your best route is all-natural peanut butter, which is usually just peanuts and sometimes a touch of salt for flavor.

Want to dig deeper? Here is even more your peanut butter and health questions—answers.

Is peanut butter good for you?

Yes, peanut butter is a great choice for a healthy diet.

“Peanut butter contains 22 grams per 100 grams (3.5 oz). Its highest nutrient is fat at 55 grams per 100 grams. It is also an excellent source of vitamin B3 at 89% of the recommended daily value, a vitamin that is important in metabolism and reactions in DNA repair,” says Garcia.

It’s also high in vitamin E at 60% of the recommended daily value per serving. Vitamin E “works as an antioxidant, stabilizing free radicals and minimizing damage in the body,” says Garcia. “He is also known to help the immune system defending the body against infectious agents.

Although fat may contribute to higher caloric intake, the type of fat in peanut butter is monounsaturated, which was shown lessen low density lipoproteins (LDL)potentially reducing the risk of atherosclerosis.

“Peanut butter, when it’s just ground peanuts, is an extremely healthy food that’s packed with healthy fats, carbs, fiber and protein,” Ellis Hunnes reiterates, adding that you should aim to eat about one ounce (with a maximum of two ounces) per day; one ounce is two tablespoons of peanut butter.

Is peanut butter good for building muscle?

If you’re looking to bulk up, peanut butter is your friend.

Ellis Hunnes Says Peanut Butter Is A Good Choice For Building Muscle Because It Contains Protein and calories. “So many people focus on protein, don’t eat enough calories, and then wonder why they’re struggling to gain muscle,” she says. “It’s because we really need both (and actually, less protein than most people think). So yeah, it’s great to add to smoothies, eat on its own, eat with fruits, etc., to help muscle growth.

Is peanut butter good for weight loss?

Yes, peanut butter can also help people looking to lose weight.

In fact, eating a spoonful or two of peanut butter can help stave off hunger and help you eat fewer calories later. “A serving of 160 calories (two tablespoons) can actually save you from eating an extra 300 or 400 calories in the form of snacks or other ‘treats’ later in the day, so it turns out to be a saving of calories, what you need for weight loss.”

Garcia says peanut butter, with its protein and fiber, helps trap sugar molecules and keep them all from being absorbed. “Excess sugar can be sent to the liver to be stored as fat, the idea is to eat foods that can help eliminate excess sugar before it is absorbed,” she says.

All this says, “because of [peanut butter’s] high calorie content of 597 calories per 3.5 ounces, the calories can add up quickly,” says Garcia. “Therefore, it’s important to know that more than 3.5 ounces of peanut butter a day can easily add up to a meal’s worth.”

And whether you’re buying peanut butter to boost your biceps or lose weight, you should always look for products with as few ingredients as possible to ensure you’re getting a high-quality, nutrient-dense nut free of additives and excess. sugar.