9 Good Reasons Why You Should Start Eating Peanut Butter
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Eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches is often a comfort mechanism that many of us enjoy. However, did you know that there are also plenty of health benefits to eating peanut butter? Yes, peanut butter has been linked with reducing the risk of breast cancer, decreasing stress levels, and also promoting brain activity and memory. Peanut butter can also help your muscles recover after an intense workout session. So let’s take a look at how peanut butter benefits our bodies and why you should consider incorporating it into your daily diet. Here are nine great reasons why you should include peanut butter in your diet:
1. Helps Reduce The Risk Of Breast Cancer
Peanut butter is packed with essential vitamins and nutrients that help promote healthy living as well as reducing the risk of breast cancer. A recent study had shown that incorporating nuts like peanuts, walnuts, etc can lower your risk of developing certain cancers like breast cancer after you have reached the postmenopausal stage. Eating the product daily can have a massive effect on your body and can vastly improve overall health due to the various healthy fats and vitamins present in it (1).
2. Can Help Boost Weight Loss
You might probably think we’re crazy by asking you to eat butter for weight loss but hear us out. Peanut butter is fatty, yes, but it contains healthy and mostly unsaturated fats which are good for the body. Peanut butter is awesome because it is dense in nutrients and provides our bodies with the energy it needs during and even after workouts. So if you feel kind of drained out after an intense workout routine, it’s a good idea to have a quick peanut butter snack. If you’d rather not consume carbs, you can have it on a celery stick instead (2)
3. Peanut Butter Lowers Stress Levels
Peanut butter contains an ingredient called beta-sitosterol that can help you regulate your levels of stress. The ingredient has a direct correlation with cortisol, our stress hormone. It contains healthy fats, iron, calcium, magnesium, and vitamin C that have a positive effect on our bodies and can even make your mind feel much better. Also, the peanut butter combined with your favorite snack can have a brilliant effect on your mood (3).
4. Promotes Good Memory And Brain Activity
The vitamin E, magnesium, zinc and other nutrients present in peanut butter are great for promoting brain activity, especially in older individuals. The active ingredients present in peanut butter are brilliant for boosting memory and can even help moderate certain diseases that come with old age and others that are associated with poor memory (4).
5. Can Help With Muscle Recovery
As mentioned earlier, peanut butter is a great ingredient to incorporate into your daily diet to improve your post workout sessions. The fats and carbs present in peanut butter are energy dense and will provide you the perfect pick-me-up snack after a hard workout session. Peanut butter is also rich in potassium and can thus play a great role in muscle recovery. Combine it with some potassium rich banana to reap even more benefits.
6. Peanut Butter Controls Your Blood Pressure
Since peanut butter is rich in potassium, it can help keep your blood pressure in check. If you’re someone who has problems related to high blood pressure, then you should definitely consider incorporating a generous dose of peanut butter into your diet. Peanut butter is also enriched with magnesium that also has a profound effect in lowering and keeping blood pressure levels in check (5).
7. Lowers Your Risk Of Type 2 Diabetes
One of the most incredible properties of peanut butter is that it can lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Many studies have been conducted that showcase a lowered risk of developing health conditions like diabetes and more with the consumption of peanut butter. Because peanuts contain a good dosage of unsaturated fats they are observed to vastly improve the production of glucose and provide insulin stability (6).
8. Peanut Butter Improves Sleep Quality
Peanut butter contains a particular amino acid called tryptophan that boosts the hormone responsible for sleep, melatonin as well as the happy hormone, serotonin. The acid calms you down, slows down your body’s processes and boosts a happy and healthy sleep. However, this doesn’t mean that you go overboard and shovel your face with it. Only a few tablespoons of it should be enough for you to have a good night’s sleep (7).
9. Peanut Butter Is Great For Expecting Mothers
Eating peanut butter during pregnancy can also have a major effect on fetal growth. Expectant mothers are recommended to get a good dose of peanut butter as it can also help their future kids build a tolerance to nut allergies and has great benefits on the mommy’s health as well (8).
The wonderful health benefits one receives from peanut butter are unparalleled and it makes for the perfect snack for people of all ages and genders. Do you have a favorite snack that you like eating with peanut butter? Let us know all of your thoughts in the comment section down below.
