Unless you are allergic to peanut you might consider peanut butter as a means to decrease cardiovascular disease.
We tend to believe that lowering our fat intake will reduce the risk of heart disease. “Step II” diet from the American Heart Association confines dietary fat to less than 25% of calories and replaces the lost fat with carbohydrates.
Recent research from the Pennsylvania State University however reveals that low fat may not necessarily be the best way to ensure a healthy heart.
“Step II” diet actually reduced the risk by 12% but a diet high in MUFAs (Monounsaturated fats), i.e 34-36% fat, decreased cardiovascular risk by an average of 20.6%.
In MUFA diet LDL cholesterol (bad fats) were reduced whereas HDL cholesterol (good fats) were not. The Step II diet however tends to bring down both LDL and HDL cholesterol concentrations, thus negating some of its own beneficial effects.
The “peanut butter diet” attained nearly the same health benefits as those who consumed the “olive oil diet”. For olive oil the reduction in cardiovascular risk reaches 26%.
Peanuts are not true nuts, but are legumes. They have a high protein content (25-30 %) and may contain the heart-healthiest of the saturated fatty acids.
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