Peanut butter is a relatively unprocessed food. It’s basically just peanuts, often roasted, ground until they turn into a paste.
Yet this isn’t necessarily true for many commercial brands of peanut butter. These may contain various added ingredients, such as: UFABET
- sugar
- vegetable oils
- trans fat
And eating too much added sugar and trans fat has been linked to various health conditions, such as heart disease.
Rather than buying processed foods with several added ingredients, choose peanut butter with only peanuts and maybe a bit of salt as its ingredients.
It’s a good protein source.
Peanut butter is a fairly balanced energy source. That supplies all of the three major macronutrients. A 3.5-ounce (100-gram) portion of peanut butter contains :
- Carbohydrates: 22 grams of carbs (14% of calories), 5 of which are fiber
- Protein: 22.5 grams of protein (14% of calories). Which is quite a lot compared with most other plant foods
- Fat: 51 grams of fat, totaling about 72% of calories
Even though peanut butter is fairly protein rich, it’s low in the essential amino acid methionine.
Peanuts belong to the legume family, which also includes beans, peas, and lentils. Legume protein is much lower in methionine and cysteine compared with animal protein.
Methionine deficiency is usually associated with an overall protein deficiency or certain disease states. Methionine deficiency is extremely rare for people who are generally in good health.
On the other hand, low methionine intake has also been thought to have some health benefits. Studies have shown that it may extend the lifespan of rats and mice, but it’s unclear if it works the same way in humans.
For other protein-rich plant foods, check out this article on the 17 best protein sources for vegans and vegetarians.