Peanuts have gotten a bad rap in recent years, but the benefits of eating peanuts are clear. In fact, peanuts are among the healthiest nuts you can choose to eat. They are filling, nutritious, and inexpensive. Read on to learn more about why peanuts are the healthiest nuts.
No GMO
GMOs are big news these days. Many people prefer to avoid them, and if that’s you, you can include peanuts on your list of healthiest nuts because there are no GMO peanuts on the market at all. Today’s peanut is almost totally identical to its ancestors.
High in Protein
One of the best things about peanuts is the protein. In fact, peanuts are just about the most cost-effective source of protein that humans can eat. A handful of peanuts, equivalent to one ounce, is rated by the Food and Drug Administration as an “excellent” source of protein. That handful has about seven grams of protein.
Rich in Minerals
A study done recently looked at 15,000 adults and children in the United States. Researchers considered both those who consumed peanuts and peanut products and those who did not and then adjusted for other factors. After adjustment, they found that those who ate the peanuts and peanut products had higher levels of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for fiber, calcium, zinc, iron, magnesium, folate, and vitamins a and E. Those who ate peanuts had a higher quality of diet overall than those who did not. Peanut butter nutritional value is hard to overestimate.
Healthy Oil
In the past we were all avoiding fat, but increasingly we are realizing that this was terrible advice. We shouldn’t be avoiding fat: we should be avoiding the wrong kinds of fat. Peanuts are among the healthiest nuts in terms of fat, and organic peanut oil is an excellent thing to cook with. In fact, the fat in peanuts is linked to the same heart and longevity benefits as the fat in nuts that cost immensely more. A study done of 200,000 people in America and China found that those who regularly ate nuts–including peanuts–were much less likely to die of any cause, especially heart disease, then those who did not eat nuts. Part of the reason that peanuts are among the healthiest nuts is their high levels of mono- and polyunsaturated fats. And while other nuts are very expensive, peanuts are dirt cheap. Plus, peanut oil can be stored as long as six months to a year if it’s kept away from heat and capped properly.
Labelling Integrity
Do you ever get tired of having to check your labels carefully at the grocery store? Do you have to turn around every product to find out what hidden items manufacturers have snuck into it? You’re very unlikely to encounter this problem when it comes to peanut butter. Peanut butter is the most popular way of ingesting peanuts and was first introduced at the St. Louis World’s Fair back in 1904. Since then, it is only become more and more popular. FDA regulations mandate that a peanut product cannot be labeled as peanut butter unless it has at least 90% peanuts.
Micronutrients
We’re increasingly aware of the existence and need for micronutrients in our diet. We all know the macronutrients: fat, protein, and carbohydrates. We are also aware of all the important essential vitamins and minerals. But there are other things we need in our diet which we can get by eating an array of foods. Peanuts and peanut snacks are a great way of getting copper. Copper is essential for energy production and neural activity in the nervous system, and deficiency of copper causes a number of health conditions. Peanuts are also a great source of biotin, part of the vitamin B complex which is more difficult for us to get in our diet than some of the other vitamin B’s.
These are just some of the benefits of eating peanuts. There are peanut recipes everywhere, and peanuts are among the healthiest nuts we can add to our diet. Fortunately, they’re also among the most inexpensive.