Peanut Butter

Peanut Butter 

Photo taken by Jenny 

How healthy is peanut butter? Although peanut butter contains fat and sodium, the saturated fat is not enough to make it "unhealthy." Foods such as olive oil, tofu and other healthy foods have some saturated fat. A normal tablespoon of peanut butter has between 90-95 calories, 3.5 grams of protein, 1.5 grams of saturated fat and 6-7 grams of unsaturated fat. It contains fiber, which helps to maintain "fullness" and vitamins and minerals such as potassium. Eating a lot of peanut butter can promote "athersoclerosis, the process that results in cardiovascular disease. According to recent research, people who eat nuts or peanut butter are less likely to have heart disease or type 2 diabetes than those who rarely eat nuts, so nuts do have benefits.

Companies have been making low-fat peanut butter brands such as PB2 and Better than Peanut Butter. Honestly, you are better off with eating regular peanut butter, because of the amount of chemicals that are in these other brands. Eat unsweetened, natural peanut butter to get the most benefit and nutrition.

While I would not recommending peanut butter all of the time, it is a fantastic pre-workout snack and should be eaten in moderation. I know that it is delicious and a great comfort food. I can relate to the people who have taken a ginormous spoon and eaten it out of the jar. Peanut butter also goes well with bread, bananas and apples as well as in smoothies (peanut butter, banana and chocolate protein powder is a great combination).

Here is a great peanut butter cookie recipe: http://thesweettomato.blogspot.com/2015/03/peanut-butter-cookies.html