What’s So Great About…Peanut Butter

I grew up eating Kraft Peanut Butter, breakfast, lunch and dinner. It was, I’m told, the only thing I ate for several years.  I’m sure I wasn’t the first kid to eschew all other food for peanut butter, but there was a little wrinkle in my case. I’m pretty sure what I loved most about peanut butter was that my sister was deathly allergic to it. This was 40 years ago.  Back then, she was the only one we knew with a peanut allergy. Things have changed. With peanuts being the pariah of the playground, one would no sooner send their kid to school with a peanut butter sandwich than a hand gun.

 That said, if you don’t have allergies in your home, I would be sure to include nuts in your diet. But nothing is ever that simple. Nuts are something that are constantly being tampered with, and a lot of the health benefits (which I promise to get to) are undermined by added sugar (lots of it), salt and hydrogenated oils. I feel like a broken record here, but you have to read the labels and when it comes to nut butters, there really should be one ingredient: nuts. Peanut butter producers add hydrogenated oil so that the natural oil of the nut doesn’t separate. I know all that stirring is a bit of a drag, but I do think we can handle it. As for the sugar and salt – you don’t need it.  Natural nut butters are delicious, and you don’t have to go to a health food store any more to find them. Try it, you’ll like it.

Peanuts (which are actually a legume) are a terrific source of protein. While you can’t send your kid to school with a peanut butter sandwich, breakfast is a great time to load your kid up with a protein packed punch. Peanut butter is a healthy source of monounsaturated fats, it contains oelic acid (also found in olive oil) and resveratrol, (the antioxidant found in red grapes and red wine which is credited with lowering cholesterol), which are great for a healthy heart.  Peanut butter is also an excellent source of fiber, vitamin E, potassium, niacin, folate and manganese.  Peanuts have a bad rep.  But the truth is, they’re pretty great. Just make sure your kid washes their hands thoroughly before they go to school. Please and thank you.

 Suggestion:

 Nuts To You Nut Butter is my preferred brand. One ingredient: dry roasted nuts. Plus, they’re a Canadian company.