Nuts!

Check out these comments from a friend of mine who is thinking of going on yet another diet. I will call her Carol.


"I just hate it. I have to lose weight. I have to go on yet another diet. Blah!!!
I have put off and put off going on yet another diet because I know what a struggle it’s going to be. I know I will lose some weight in the first week, maybe even some in the next few weeks, but I also know I will almost certainly put it all back on, plus some, once I go off the diet. And for some reason I develop cravings. Usually it’s for peanut butter. Peanut butter on toast. With butter! Yes. A nice piece of toast with butter and peanut butter. Yum! 


The funny thing is, when I’m not on a diet I don’t have peanut butter very often at all. I can go two or three months without even thinking about it let alone eating any of it.

So what is in peanut butter that my body craves so much? Since peanut butter is made from peanuts, vegetable oil and a bit of salt I am guessing that peanut butter on toast supplies just what nutrients my body needs at the time. If I always ate the stuff it would be different, it might just be a lack of discipline or something, but I think that when I diet my body cries out for what it lacks, and what it lacks is found in nuts."

Nuts contain fat, protein and fiber. Research also shows that nuts, eaten in moderation as part of a controlled diet, help people lose weight. Nuts help reduce blood pressure, helps reduce risk of Type 2 diabetes and helps those on a weight loss diet to stick to their diets.

In addition to protein, fiber and fat, nuts contain magnesium, manganese, zinc and phosphorus. Some nuts also contain varying levels of Omega-3 fatty acids (walnuts), and vitamin E (almonds). Peanuts contain folate, vitamin B, and niacin. What nuts do not contain is cholesterol.

The FDA recommendation for nuts is for 1.5 ounces (42 grams) of nuts daily, or 2 tablespoons of peanut butter per day.  Peanuts, technically, aren’t nuts at all. They are legumes, as are lentils, peas and  dry beans.

I suggested to Carol that a few nuts as part of her diet would reduce or eliminate the craving, give her body what it needs, help her lose weight and have additional health benefits. Carol is going to start have a small number of almonds as a mid-morning snack. She is going to let me know how she goes with the diet.