Recently I've done an (accidental) series called worst foods and best foods. In yesterday's post, I did the worst frozen pizzas around. If you are interested in reading that here is the link so you can check it out Click Here
Peanut butter ought to be a healthy food, packed with protein, fiber, and monounsaturated fats, plus plenty of fat-burning folates. But most commercial peanut butters are packed with hydrogenated oils and unnecessary fillers and have more sugar than they do fiber. As a result, they cause fat storage—not fat burning.
With this series, I typically start with the worst of something. Today I am going to start with the worst peanut butters that are on the market today. This is just my opinion and you may not agree and that is fine I say this because I know some people take their peanut butter seriously.
Tip: A really good peanut butter should have just two ingredients: peanuts and sometimes a pinch of salt. Sadly today’s manufacturers—even the “all-natural” brands advertising themselves as "healthy"—pack their PBs with additives you simply don’t need. “Peanut butters are most often processed with hydrogenated oils and sugar, so make sure you check the label carefully
Peanut butter ought to be a healthy food, packed with protein, fiber, and monounsaturated fats, plus plenty of fat-burning folates. But most commercial peanut butters are packed with hydrogenated oils and unnecessary fillers and have more sugar than they do fiber. As a result, they cause fat storage—not fat burning.
With this series, I typically start with the worst of something. Today I am going to start with the worst peanut butters that are on the market today. This is just my opinion and you may not agree and that is fine I say this because I know some people take their peanut butter seriously.
Tip: A really good peanut butter should have just two ingredients: peanuts and sometimes a pinch of salt. Sadly today’s manufacturers—even the “all-natural” brands advertising themselves as "healthy"—pack their PBs with additives you simply don’t need. “Peanut butters are most often processed with hydrogenated oils and sugar, so make sure you check the label carefully
Peanut Butter & Co. Smooth Operator + Crunch Time
Peanuts are naturally filled with oils—and studies have found that the monounsaturated fats found in foods like nuts and olive oil are protective of brain health and function. So why does Peanut Butter & Co. add palm fruit oil ( Palm fruit oil is often claimed to be highly nutritious and contains about equal amounts of saturated and unsaturated oils. Palm kernel oil is made from the kernel, or seed of the palm fruit and contains much higher amounts of saturated fat.) Both are problematic for our health primarily due to processing to their crunchy and smooth blends? It helps with oil separation, stabilizing the mix. A better question is, why do they add cane sugar?
Nutrition Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 180 calories, 15 g fat (2.5 g saturated fat), 100 mg sodium, 8 g carbs (2 g fiber, 3 g sugar), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Peanuts, Cane Sugar, Palm Fruit Oil, Salt
Earth Balance Peanut Butter With Flax Seed, Crunchy
Sorry Vegans this isn't healthy at all! Earth Balance, one of the first brands to bring “healthy” PBs into the mainstream, gets much love for including all-natural sugars, and fiber-filling flaxseed.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 16 g fat (2.5 g saturated fat), 110 mg sodium, 8 g carbs (2 g fiber, 2 g sugars), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Peanuts, Flaxseed, Peanut Oil, Agave Syrup, Palm Fruit Oil, Salt
Earth Balance Peanut Butter With Flax Seed, Creamy
Like the crunchy variety, but with a bit more saturated fat.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 16 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 110 mg sodium, 7 g carbs (2 g fiber, 2 g sugars), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Peanuts, Flaxseed, Peanut Oil, Agave Syrup, Palm Fruit Oil, Salt
Simply Jif Creamy
Choosy moms, won't choose this Jif! "Advertised" as a healthier option compared to regular Jif, this has the same unhealthy ingredients, just rearranged. While i commend them for owning up to adding sugars to their PB, I still can’t endorse it. At least it has less sodium.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 200 calories, 17 g fat (3.5 g saturated fat), 65 mg sodium, 7 g carbs(3 g fiber, 2 g sugar), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts, Contains 2% or less of Fully Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (soybean and rapeseed), Mono and Diglycerides, Molasses, Sugar, Salt
Jif Creamy and Extra Crunchy Peanut Butter
One of the best-selling peanut butters in America is made with fully hydrogenated vegetable oils—extremely hard, wax-like fats made by forcing as much hydrogen as possible onto the carbon backbone of fat molecules. To obtain a manageable consistency, food manufacturers often blend the hard fat with un-hydrogenated liquid fats. Remember that next time you’re making your kids sandwich.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 16 g fat (3.5 g saturated fat), 140 mg sodium, 8 g carbs (2 g fiber, 3 g sugar), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts and Sugar, Contains 2% or Less of: Molasses, Fully Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (soybean and rapeseed), Mono and Diglycerides, Salt.
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts and Sugar, Contains 2% or Less of: Molasses, Fully Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (soybean and rapeseed), Mono and Diglycerides, Salt.
The battle between Skippy and Jif isn’t a war at all—they’re both made with the same sugars and oils, including saturated-fat-filled hydrogenated oils. A study published in the journal Diabetes found that while unsaturated fat can help reduce abdominal fat, saturated fat can increase waist size. Saturated fats, like the kind you’ll find in baked goods and red meat, “turn on” certain genes that increase the storage of fat in the bell
Jif Creamy Peanut Butter
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 16 g fat (2.5 saturated fat), 140 mg sodium, 8 g carbs (2 g fiber, 3 g sugar), 7 g proteinIngredients: Roasted Peanuts and Sugar, Contains 2% or Less of: Molasses, Fully Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (soybean and rapeseed), Mono and Diglycerides, Salt.
Skippy Regular Peanut Butter, Creamy
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 16 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 150 mg sodium, 7 g carbs (2 g fiber, 3 g sugar), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts, Sugar, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Cottonseed, Soybean and Rapeseed Oil) To Prevent Separation, Salt.
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts, Sugar, Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (Cottonseed, Soybean and Rapeseed Oil) To Prevent Separation, Salt.
Jif Creamy Reduced Fat Peanut Butter
Words you never want to see in your food: “Reduced Fat.” When manufacturers take something out, they put something back in. In this case, that’s two kinds of sugar, a ton of Frankenstein additives, including corn syrup, the liquid sweetener and food thickener made by allowing enzymes to break corn starches into smaller sugars. It provides no nutritional value other than calories.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 12 g fat (2.5 g saturated fat), 200 mg sodium, 15 g carbs (2 g fiber, 4 g sugar), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Peanuts, Corn Syrup Solids, Sugar, Pea Protein, Contains 2% or less of Salt, Fully Hydrogenated Vegetable Oils (soybean and rapeseed), Mono and Diglycerides, Molasses, Magnesium Oxide, Niacinamide, Ferric Orthophosphate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Folic Acid, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride
Smucker’s Natural Peanut Butter Reduced Fat
I would be really afraid and worried when the first ingredient IS NOT PEANUTS! So what’s maltodextrin? It’s a caloric sweetener and flavor enhancer made from rice, potatoes, or more commonly, cornstarch. Through treatment with enzymes and acids, it can be converted into a fiber and thickening agent. Like other sugars, it has the potential to raise blood glucose and insulin levels.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 180 calories, 12 g fat (1.5 g saturated fat), 120 mg sodium, 11 g carbs (3 g fiber, 2 g sugar), 9 g protein
Ingredients: Peanuts, Maltodextrin, Reduced Fat Ground Peanuts, Salt.
Skippy Natural Peanut Butter, Creamy
Don’t be fooled by the “Natural” label—it just means the sugar inside is real sugar. That doesn’t make it any less unnecessary.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 190 calories, 16 g fat (3.5 g saturated fat), 150 mg sodium, 6 g carbs (2 g fiber, 3 g sugars), 7 g protein
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts, Sugar, Palm Oil, Salt
Peter Pan Crunchy
It’s unfortunate that the cheaper brands of peanut butter are always the worst nutritionally. That’s the case here, as one serving of this brand has nearly double the sodium of the Simply Jif Creamy PB.
Nutritional Facts: PER 2 TBSP: 200 calories, 16 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 110 mg sodium, 6 g carbs (2 g fiber, 3 g sugar), 8 g protein
Ingredients: Roasted Peanuts, Sugar, Less than 2% of Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (cottonseed and rapeseed), Salt, Partially Hydrogenated Cottonseed Oil
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