Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Is Peanut Butter Healthy?


Yep, surprisingly enough for me, it is. Pretty much. In moderation. I don't do moderation very well, but if you can handle it, peanut butter is good for you because:

It helps you lose weight
Calling peanut butter a diet food, with 180 to 210 calories per serving, may seem counter-intuitive. But it has the enviable combination of fiber (2 g per serving) and protein (8 g per serving) that fills you up and keeps you feeling full longer, so you eat less overall. Plus, there's nothing more indulgent than licking peanut butter off a spoon--and indulgence (in moderation) helps dieters fight cravings and stay on track.

It's packed with nutrition
A serving of peanut butter has 3 mg of the powerful antioxidant vitamin E, 49 mg of bone-building magnesium, 208 mg of muscle-friendly potassium, and 0.17 mg of immunity-boosting vitamin B6. Research shows that eating peanuts can decrease your risk of heart disease, diabetes, and other chronic health conditions. One study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that consuming 1 ounce of nuts or peanut butter (about 2 tablespoons) at least 5 days a week can lower the risk of developing diabetes by almost 30%.

It's got the good fat
Peanut butter is chock-full of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat. A recent study found that insulin-resistant adults who ate a diet high in monos had less belly fat than people who ate more carbohydrates or saturated fat. PS: If you're buying reduced-fat peanut butter because you think it's better for your waistline, save your money. The calories are the same (or even a little higher) thanks to the extra ingredients that are added to make up for the missing fat (including more sugar).

All of this is coming from this article.

Now, alot of moms go for the tried and true Ants on a Log as a fun way to do peanut butter. Not my kids. You can't fool them. They know celery is a vegetable and they'll just run away. This goofy picture is how I managed to get peanut butter into the kids today. Abby didn't fall for it. But Will did. I spread a little bit of PB on about 5 pretzels. That keeps the serving size down, but he did not complain. Why? Because I put a few sprinkles on it and he thought it must be his birthday or something.
*Sidenote: I think he'll eat anything if it has sprinkles on it. Try it. The sprinkles aren't all that unhealthy.

6 comments:

  1. I have found that when my kids are antsy for a snack in that sneaky before dinner window, a spoonful of peanut butter fills 'em up and calms them down. Works for me, too!

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  2. I love the sprinkles idea... my daughter will eat pb any time of the day, but the sprinkles may work for other things too?

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  3. Hey! Why not suggest the natural (no sugar added) peanut butter?!?! We made the switch in my house and we love it. Nothing but peanuts and salt in the ingredients. Add whole wheat bread & low sugar jelly for a healthier version of the classic PBJ! YUM

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  4. You're right, Dawn. I should probably make the switch. I just looked it up and natural has 1 g of sugar vs. the 3g in mine, and much less salt. The only problem I've had is spreading it without tearing up my bread!

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  5. Hi! Coming via Ohdeedoh and having fun with your posts, comments...

    My daughter loves sprinkles too but I try not to give her a lot because of the "colorant". It seems that the red color is linked to cancer, the same red that's used in the fruit loop cereal. Have you heard anything about it?

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  6. Oooh, I haven't. Definitely something to look into. I guess you can always get another solid color. We have some that look like big sugar crystals.

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