Celebrate National Peanut Butter Lovers Month

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Nov 13, 2024, 10:17 ET

The Peanut Institute Shares 10 Tasty Recipes

ALBANY, Ga., Nov. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- November is the time to recognize a classic American food – peanut butter. In fact, peanut butter and peanuts are so popular they account for two-thirds of all nut consumption in the United States.

While they're ubiquitous now, that wasn't always the case. In the early 19^th century, George Washington Carver introduced crop rotation. It was a pioneering farming practice that took peanuts from relative obscurity to a leading crop in the country and laid the groundwork for the introduction of a new butter.

Just one serving of peanut butter delivers seven grams of protein plus fiber, healthy fats and 19 vitamins and minerals. (PRNewsfoto/The Peanut Institute)

Today, peanut butter is eaten for breakfast, lunch, dinner and everything in between. Not only is it a tasty and versatile food, it's also a healthy choice.

"As nutrition scientists, we're always looking for beneficial foods that people can easily incorporate into their daily diet," says Dr. Samara Sterling, research director for The Peanut Institute and a nutrition scientist. "Since peanuts and peanut butter deliver so many short- and long-term health benefits, they are 'smart choice' foods. Plus, they're affordable and can be go-to staples for children, teens, adults and seniors."

Sustainable Protein
As Carver demonstrated centuries ago, peanuts replenish nitrogen in the soil, which makes them great for crop rotation. In addition, peanut butter production creates lower levels of CO2 compared to other protein sources, including meat, eggs and cheese.¹ And, because they're legumes, peanuts don't require as much water to grow as other nuts — they need less than half the water almonds do.^{2, 3} Peanuts not only benefit the soil, their hulls, husks and oil are repurposed as animal feed and biodiesel.

Healthy Building Blocks
In terms of a food source, a single serving of peanut butter, which is about 2 tablespoons, provides seven grams of hunger-satisfying protein, along with hard-to-get nutrients, including dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, thiamin and vitamin E.

Dollar for dollar, peanuts and peanut butter pack all those nutrients into one of the most affordable proteins around. In fact, they don't just beat many other plant-based sources, they're also more affordable than most animal-based protein.⁴ That is great news since research has found that swapping meat for plant-based protein can help increase life expectancy⁵.

Weight Management
Peanut butter's combination of protein, fiber and unsaturated fats helps deliver a feeling of fullness otherwise known as satiety. Studies have shown eating peanut butter in the morning can reduce the urge to snack throughout the day,⁶ while other studies found peanuts may even help improve the effectiveness of certain diets.⁷

Diabetic Friendly
As low-glycemic foods,⁸ peanuts and peanut butter are digested more slowly, which helps prevent sugar spikes that can lead to crashes. It's just one reason why the American Diabetes Association lists nuts as "Diabetes Superfoods."

Foods with a low glycemic index, like peanuts, have also been shown to significantly improve glucose control in patients with type 2 diabetes, similar to the amounts achieved with medication.⁹

Brain Boosting
In addition to providing the energy a body needs to stay focused, researchers have found an antioxidant in peanuts (p-coumaric acid) could have similar anxiety-reducing effects as some leading anxiety-reducing drugs.¹⁰

Nutrients in peanuts may also help to slow or prevent cognitive decline in old age. Niacin, for example, has been associated with a 70% lower risk of Alzheimer's disease.¹¹

Preventative Medicine
A small daily serving of peanuts can offer some pretty big benefits. Just 10 grams of nuts, like peanuts, per day has been associated with a 20% reduced risk in overall cancer mortality.¹²

In addition, a recently released study found that daily peanut consumption can "enhance key bacterial communities" that support a healthy gut, including many that are linked to cardiovascular health.¹³

Peanut Butter Recipes
To incorporate peanut butter and peanuts into a healthy diet, The Peanut Institute has assembled a collection of 10 tasty recipes.

The day starts with overnight Apple Peanut Butter Oatmeal. For lunch, there's Peanut Butter and Strawberry Quesadillas. Protein Balls are a snack that provide a boost of energy during the day. Beef Satay is an easy dinner option and that's topped off with Peanut Butter Pudding for dessert.

For the complete recipes, visit PeanutInstitute.com or follow The Peanut Institute on Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest.

Based in Albany, Ga., The Peanut Institute is a non-profit organization supporting nutrition research and developing educational programs to encourage healthful lifestyles that include peanuts and peanut products. The Peanut Institute pursues its mission through research programs, educational initiatives and the promotion of healthful lifestyles to consumers of all ages. As an independent forum, The Peanut Institute is uniquely positioned to work with all segments of the food industry, the research community, academia, consumer organizations and governmental institutions.

Sources:

"Life Cycle Assessment of Greenhouse Gas Emissions Associated with Production and Consumption of Peanut Butter in the U.S." J.A. McCarty et al. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, 2014, vol. 57, no. 6., pp. 1741-1750.
"The Green, Blue and Grey Water Footprint of Crops and Derived Crop Products." M.M. Mekonnen and A.Y. Hoekstra. UNESCO Institute for Water Education, December 2010. http://wfn.project-platforms.com/Reports/Report47-WaterFootprintCrops-Vol1.pdf.
"The Role of Peanuts in Global Food Security." H. Valentine. Peanuts: Genetics, Processing, and Utilization. H.T. Stalker and R.F. Wilson, eds. London: Academic Press and AOCS Press, 2016, pp. 447-61.
Huang J, Liao LM, Weinstein SJ, Sinha R, Graubard BI, Albanes D. Association Between Plant and Animal Protein Intake and Overall and Cause-Specific Mortality. JAMA Intern Med. 2020 Sep 1;180(9):1173-1184. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.2790. PMID: 32658243; PMCID: PMC7358979.
Pan A, Sun Q, Bernstein AM, Schulze MB, Manson JE, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC, Hu FB. Red meat consumption and mortality: results from 2 prospective cohort studies. Arch Intern Med. 2012 Apr 9;172(7):555-63. doi: 10.1001/archinternmed.2011.2287. Epub 2012 Mar 12. PMID: 22412075; PMCID: PMC3712342.
Reis CEG, Ribeiro DN, Costa NMB, Bressan J, Alfenas RCG, Mattes RD. Acute and second-meal effects of peanuts on glycaemic response and appetite in obese women with high type 2 diabetes risk: a randomised cross-over clinical trial. British Journal of Nutrition. 2013;109(11):2015-2023. doi:10.1017/S0007114512004217
Petersen KS, Murphy J, Whitbread J, Clifton PM, Keogh JB. The Effect of a Peanut-Enriched Weight Loss Diet Compared to a Low-Fat Weight Loss Diet on Body Weight, Blood Pressure, and Glycemic Control: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Nutrients. 2022; 14(14):2986. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14142986
Arya SS, Salve AR, Chauhan S. Peanuts as functional food: a review. J Food Sci Technol. 2016 Jan;53(1):31-41. doi: 10.1007/s13197-015-2007-9. Epub 2015 Sep 19. Review. PubMed PMID: 26787930; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4711439.
Ajala O, English P, Pinkney J. Systematic review and meta-analysis of different dietary approaches to the management of type 2 diabetes. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013 Mar;97(3):505-16. doi: 10.3945/ajcn.112.042457. Epub 2013 Jan 30. Review. PubMed PMID: 23364002.
Li, M., Shi, Z. A Prospective Association of Nut Consumption with Cognitive Function in Chinese Adults Aged 55+ _ China Health and Nutrition Survey. J Nutr Health Aging 23, 211–216 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-018-1122-5
Morris MC, Evans DA, Bienias JL, Scherr PA, Tangney CC, Hebert LE, Bennett DA, Wilson RS, Aggarwal N. Dietary niacin and the risk of incident Alzheimer's disease and of cognitive decline. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2004 Aug;75(8):1093-9. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.2003.025858. PMID: 15258207; PMCID: PMC1739176.
Chang Cao, Xinyan Gan, Yan He, Shiqi Nong, Yonglin Su, Zheran Liu, Yu Zhang, Xiaolin Hu & Xingchen Peng(2023) Association between nut consumption and cancer risk: a meta-analysis, Nutrition and Cancer, 75:1,82-94, DOI: 10.1080/01635581.2022.2104880
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