Undecided

Time for some blog therapy. I just found out about a new product PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter. At the moment I am very undecided on whether this is a good/healthy product. So today you will get to see the inner workings of my brain as I work out the problem in this post.

First off, what is PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter? 2 TBSP PB2 + 1 TBSP water = instant peanut butter. Simply compressed peanuts + salt + sugar. No artificial sweeteners or preservatives. Ok that's a check plus.

Second, why do I want to eat this instead of real peanut butter? Less calories. Hmm in the process of squeezing out all the oil in the peanuts they squeeze out all the oil and fat. Check minus. Yes 2 TBSP of PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter is only 45 calories versus 190 for regular peanut butter. But (healthy) fat. is. good. We all need fat to live. We need fat to feel full. We need fat to burn fat. And peanut butter/ nuts in general are some of the BEST sources for healthy fats. Eating 4-5 servings of nuts a week lowers your chance of coronary heart disease by 35%. Eating nuts is also associated with weight loss and weight maintenance. Don't believe me? Read all about nuts on Worlds Healthiest Foods (take a look at the other foods too!).

And finally the packaging. This is an intensive processing and packaging process. Solely to make peanut butter that I'm sure tastes worse than the real stuff that I can buy in bulk at the coop. Very bad for the environment. Check minus minus.

Well check plus + check minus + check minus minus = bad. Overall I think the health benefits and flavor of peanut butter are extraordinary. Two things I would not like to sacrifice. Besides that, I think this product is causing unnecessary damage to the environment through its production and packaging.

After all it is not good fat that is causing obesity, heart disease, high cholesterol, etc. it is the fat and preservatives in processed/fast/junk food. Just as eggs won't raise your cholesterol as previously thought (they were actually shown in a study to lower cholesterol) 2 TBSP of full fat peanut butter a day will not bust the buttons off your jeans. Just remember to get the peanut butter with no added oils and sugar. The ingredients list of peanut butter should read "Peanuts". If you like your PB a little salty then the ingredients list can read "Peanuts, salt".

Remember when deciding what to eat look for the most nutrition per calorie, i.e. nutritionally dense foods. Not just foods low in calories- this means nothing. Something can be low in calories in be bad for you just as high calorie foods can be good for you(like avocados and hummus mmmm). Nutritionally dense foods will keep you fuller longer and actually help you lose weight. Need help figuring out what foods are nutritionally dense? Your in luck the people at Worlds Healthiest Foods already did all the work in this Worlds Healthiest Food List.

Would you eat powdered peanut butter? Do you count calories or seek for low-calorie foods? Or do you try to find nutritionally dense foods?