SusanT
06-22-2001, 10:06 PM
Found this on Yahoo news. Thought it may be of interest to PB fans.
Friday June 22 12:32 PM EDT
Study Says Peanut Butter Was Smeared
By Robin Foster
HealthScoutNews Reporter
FRIDAY, June 22 (HealthScoutNews) -- Peanut butter lovers, rejoice.
A new government study confirms once and for all that the once-maligned sandwich spread contains no trans fats. And we're not just talking homemade here; we're talking Jif, Skippy, Peter Pan and Reese's.
Researchers with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (news - web sites)'s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) just finished thoroughly testing 11 brands of peanut butter, major store brands and "natural" brands alike. They also tested plain peanut paste. After all the samples were put through chemical analysis, researchers couldn't find detectable levels of trans fats.
Concerns about trans fats surfaced because tiny amounts of hydrogenated vegetable oils are added to commercial peanut butter to make it creamier and improve its shelf life. Research has suggested a link between trans fats and increased levels of LDL, the "bad" cholesterol, which can cause blockages in arteries.
"We've given people permission to eat peanut butter again," says lead study author Timothy H. Sanders. "There should be little to no concern for trans fats in commercial peanut butter because there's no detectable trans fat in peanut butter."
Sanders says he decided to do the study because media reports were creating public fears about peanut butter.
Sanders "has shed a lot of light on the supposed rumor about peanut butter having trans-fatty acids," says Maureen Storey, director of the Center for Food and Nutrition Policy in Washington, D.C. "I think it's a valuable study. He did a very thorough job. I think his study is very important to squelch some of those silly rumors going around."
Sanders' study included six dated samples of four national brands, at least two different dates of private label products and four different samples of two natural brands. The samples came from all over the country. Three different samples were taken from each jar. Everything was sent to an outside lab for testing.
Lipids were extracted from the samples, and through a complex process involving drying, heating and chemical treatments, the lab measured the amount of trans fats in each sample. But no detectable measure of trans fat were found. The testers used 0.01 percent of the total sample weight as a benchmark. The Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) sets that standard at 0.5 percent.
The ARS researchers did find plenty of unsaturated fats, oleic acid in particular. But those fats, which also are found in olive oil and canola oil, are believed to help reduce heart disease. Unsaturated fats can help raise the levels of HDL, the "good" cholesterol, which tends to keep arteries clear. Most peanut butters have about 80 percent unsaturated fat.
Peanut butter does have 3 grams of saturated fat per serving, and saturated fat is believed to raise blood cholesterol levels. And if you are allergic to peanuts, you need to avoid peanut butter.
Other researchers have come up with findings similar to the ARS study, which appeared last month in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
A Pennsylvania State University study found that two to three daily servings of peanuts or peanut butter lowered cholesterol by 11 percent to 14 percent and reduced the risk of cardiovascular disease by 21 percent. A low-fat diet reduced the risk by only 12 percent, that study found.
"It's one of the best foods around. Throw in a glass of milk, and you're all set," says Storey.
It's also one of the most popular. Americans eat about 1.2 billion pounds of peanut butter a year, says the American Peanut Institute. That's about 6 pounds for the average American household, says the Peanut Council. And the maker of Skippy peanut butter estimates the average American youngster will eat 1,500 peanut butter sandwiches by the end of high school.
Friday June 22 12:32 PM EDT
Study Says Peanut Butter Was Smeared
By Robin Foster
HealthScoutNews Reporter
FRIDAY, June 22 (HealthScoutNews) -- Peanut butter lovers, rejoice.
A new government study confirms once and for all that the once-maligned sandwich spread contains no trans fats. And we're not just talking homemade here; we're talking Jif, Skippy, Peter Pan and Reese's.
Researchers with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (news - web sites)'s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) just finished thoroughly testing 11 brands of peanut butter, major store brands and "natural" brands alike. They also tested plain peanut paste. After all the samples were put through chemical analysis, researchers couldn't find detectable levels of trans fats.
Concerns about trans fats surfaced because tiny amounts of hydrogenated vegetable oils are added to commercial peanut butter to make it creamier and improve its shelf life. Research has suggested a link between trans fats and increased levels of LDL, the "bad" cholesterol, which can cause blockages in arteries.
"We've given people permission to eat peanut butter again," says lead study author Timothy H. Sanders. "There should be little to no concern for trans fats in commercial peanut butter because there's no detectable trans fat in peanut butter."
Sanders says he decided to do the study because media reports were creating public fears about peanut butter.
Sanders "has shed a lot of light on the supposed rumor about peanut butter having trans-fatty acids," says Maureen Storey, director of the Center for Food and Nutrition Policy in Washington, D.C. "I think it's a valuable study. He did a very thorough job. I think his study is very important to squelch some of those silly rumors going around."
Sanders' study included six dated samples of four national brands, at least two different dates of private label products and four different samples of two natural brands. The samples came from all over the country. Three different samples were taken from each jar. Everything was sent to an outside lab for testing.
Lipids were extracted from the samples, and through a complex process involving drying, heating and chemical treatments, the lab measured the amount of trans fats in each sample. But no detectable measure of trans fat were found. The testers used 0.01 percent of the total sample weight as a benchmark. The Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) sets that standard at 0.5 percent.
The ARS researchers did find plenty of unsaturated fats, oleic acid in particular. But those fats, which also are found in olive oil and canola oil, are believed to help reduce heart disease. Unsaturated fats can help raise the levels of HDL, the "good" cholesterol, which tends to keep arteries clear. Most peanut butters have about 80 percent unsaturated fat.
Peanut butter does have 3 grams of saturated fat per serving, and saturated fat is believed to raise blood cholesterol levels. And if you are allergic to peanuts, you need to avoid peanut butter.
Other researchers have come up with findings similar to the ARS study, which appeared last month in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
A Pennsylvania State University study found that two to three daily servings of peanuts or peanut butter lowered cholesterol by 11 percent to 14 percent and reduced the risk of cardiovascular disease by 21 percent. A low-fat diet reduced the risk by only 12 percent, that study found.
"It's one of the best foods around. Throw in a glass of milk, and you're all set," says Storey.
It's also one of the most popular. Americans eat about 1.2 billion pounds of peanut butter a year, says the American Peanut Institute. That's about 6 pounds for the average American household, says the Peanut Council. And the maker of Skippy peanut butter estimates the average American youngster will eat 1,500 peanut butter sandwiches by the end of high school.