To visit my blog please go to http://austinnutrition.blogspot.com/. Thanks, Alison
Peanut butter is a great food for kids and adults. It contains a significant amount of heart healthy fat (monounsaturated fat) and protein. It can be part of a healthy breakfast (ie. whole wheat toast with peanut butter) or snack (ie. peanut butter on celery or apples). However, you like to eat peanut butter it is a great food. Peanut butter is a healthier choice than butter or cream cheese (both which contain a significant amount of saturated fat that clogs arteries).
All peanut butter is not created equal. Many brands of peanut butter have added sugar and/or hydrogenated oils (hydrogenated oils, also known as trans fat, can clog arteries). Peter Pan and Jiff have added sugar. The HEB Hill Country brand has sugar and hydrogenated oil. Smart Balance Omega brand has added molasses (although it is not sugar, it still is a sweetener).
So, when choosing a peanut butter look for the word “natural” on the label. And double check the ingredient list and make sure it contains only peanuts and perhaps salt (not sugar, hydrogenated oils, etc.). Most of the “natural” peanut butters you have to stir them before eating them (the oil settles at the top of the jar), so I realize they are a little extra work, but well worth it. I have found two brands of natural peanut butter at my local HEB, the Central Market All Natural Peanut Butter and Laura Scudder's.
Ugh...I just hate that word diet. It assumes a starting and stopping point...it sets us up to fail. My last post was on the National Weight Loss Registry, a study that looks at people who have successfully lost at least 30 pounds or more and kept it off for at least a year. If you haven't read it, I recommend that you do.
Anyway most of us know, just by personal experience, that dieting doesn't really work for longterm weight loss.
I suggest that you embark on a healthy eating journey or a find on new eating plan, but not start a diet.
Dieting doesn't lend itself to flexibility, often makes us feel bad about ourselves and well most of them don't work.
I am not saying that you shouldn't try to eat better to lose weight, control your cholesterol or blood sugars, but find an eating style that you can live with over the long haul. Take stock in what you are willing and not willing to do. So, if you really love chocolate and not willing to give it up, then continue to eat it. But, maybe just less at one sitting or eat it less frequently.
I think finding an eating style can take time, trial and error and there are going to be bumps in the road.
But, don't give up. And remember to think about changes that you are willing to make permanently.
