Peanuts as Functional Food

Peanut is an important crop grown worldwide. There are numerous nutritional benefits of peanuts, as they are an excellent source of plant-based protein, fiber, and many key vitamins and minerals. Along with their healthful nutritional profile, peanuts are a calorie-rich food, so they are most healthful when enjoyed in moderation.

Commercially it is used mainly for oil production but apart from oil, the by-products of peanut contain many other functional compounds like proteins, fibers, polyphenols, antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals which can be added as a functional ingredient into many processed foods.

Longer Life Span

Eating peanuts might help you live longer too. Recently it has also been revealed that peanuts are an excellent source of compounds like resveratrol, phenolic acids, flavonoids and phytosterols that block the absorption of cholesterol from diet. It is also a good source of Coenzyme Q10 and contains all the 20 amino acids with the highest amount of arginine. These bioactive compounds have been recognized for having disease preventive properties and are thought to promote longevity. The processing methods like roasting and boiling have shown an increase in the concentration of these bioactive compounds.

Peanuts are a nutrient-rich source of protein, dietary fiber, and healthful fats. Eating them in moderation, as part of a balanced diet, may support heart health, help a person maintain a healthy weight, and help a person manage their blood sugar levels.

A Superfood

Peanuts are a superfood and illustrate the concept of food as medicine. When you eat peanuts and peanut butter, you're ingesting three macronutrients -- protein, fiber, and healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.

You're also getting 19 micronutrients, including vitamin E, potassium, manganese phosphorus, magnesium, and B vitamins. Despite being high in calories, peanuts are nutrient-rich and low in carbohydrates.

The mixture of healthful fats, protein, and fiber in peanuts means they provide nutritional benefits and make a person feel fuller for longer. This makes peanuts a healthful, go-to snack when people compare them with chips, crackers, and other simple carbohydrate foods.

Peanut Protein

Protein is essential for building and repairing body cells. The major functions of proteins are providing structure, regulating body processes, transporting materials, balancing fluids, helping with immunity, and providing energy.

Peanuts are an excellent source of plant-based protein, offering 25.8 g per 100 g of peanuts, or around half of a person’s daily protein needs. Most plant proteins are incomplete sources of protein, meaning that they lack one or more essential amino acids. Peanuts, however, are a complete source of protein, meaning that they contain eight essential amino acids in sufficient amounts.

Peanut protein is one of the most important food proteins in the world. The peanut proteins have been found to have good emulsifying activity, emulsifying stability, foaming capacity, excellent water retention and high solubility, and can also provide a new high protein food ingredient product formulation and protein formulation in the food industry. Due to their good nutritional value and potential health effects, peanut proteins have been widely applied in many food formulations. 

Healthful Fats

Fatty acids are an essential part of every diet. Most of the fats in peanuts are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids, which are a healthful type of fat. Consuming monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats instead of saturated and trans fats can improve a person’s blood cholesterol levels. This, in turn, lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke.

There is also a small amount of saturated fat in peanuts. Saturated fat is less healthful than unsaturated or polyunsaturated fat.

Dietary Fiber

Peanuts are a good source of dietary fiber. They contain 8.5 gram per 100 gram, which is around one-quarter of a male’s recommended fiber intake or one-third for females. Fiber is a heart-healthful nutrient. Eating fiber-rich foods improves blood cholesterol levels and lowers the risk of heart disease, stroke, obesity, and type 2 diabetes.

Fiber slows down the digestive processes, allowing a steadier release of energy, and protein takes longer to break down than simple carbohydrates.

Managing Blood Sugar

Peanuts are an excellent food for people with diabetes or a risk of diabetes. Peanuts have a low glycemic index (GI), meaning they do not cause big spikes in blood sugar levels. Nutritionists see foods with a GI of 55 or lower as low-GI foods, and those with a GI of more than 70 are high-GI foods. Peanuts have a low glycemic index of 14, which helps to prevent spikes in blood sugar.

Peanuts help control blood sugar levels because they are relatively low in carbohydrates but high in protein, fat, and fiber. Research suggests that eating peanut butter or peanuts may help people with obesity and a higher type 2 diabetes risk to manage their blood sugar levels.

Peanut Oil

Peanut oil is low in saturated fats, free from cholesterol, contains essential fatty acid (linoleic acid (omega-6)) making it one of the healthiest cooking oils.

Being a vegetable oil, peanut oil is a good source of plant sterols, especially ß-sitosterol. Foods containing at least 0.4 gram per serving of plant sterols, eaten twice a day with meals for a daily total intake of at least 0.8 gram, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol, may reduce the risk of heart disease. Phyto-sterols competitively inhibit cholesterol absorption in the gut and thereby can reduce cholesterol levels by 10% to 15%.

Peanut oil is one of the high calorie foods. Its calorie value comes from fatty acids. Nonetheless, the oil is especially rich in monounsaturated fatty acids like oleic acid that helps lower LDL or "bad cholesterol" and increases HDL or "good cholesterol" in the blood.

Peanut oil contains resveratrol, a polyphenol antioxidant, which has been found to have a protective function against cancers, heart disease, degenerative nerve disease, Alzheimer's disease, and viral/fungal infections. Resveratrol cuts stroke risk through altering molecular mechanisms in the blood vessels, reducing susceptibility to vascular damage and by increasing production of nitric oxide.

Peanut oil contains valuable amounts of antioxidant vitamin-E. Vitamin-E is a powerful lipid-soluble antioxidant, required for maintaining the integrity of the cell membrane of mucosa and skin by protecting it from harmful oxygen-free radicals.

In addition to being a vegetable source, peanut oil is also an ideal choice for deep-frying where it can be heated to higher temperatures. This results in lower oil retention in the fried foods.

How to Eat Peanuts?

For their optimal health benefits, choose raw peanuts with the skin on. Raw peanuts with their skin on are high in cell-defending antioxidants. Antioxidants help protect the body’s cells from damage from free radicals. Producers usually remove the skins from most roasted or salted peanuts.

Peanuts come in many forms, including roasted, salted, chocolate-coated, and as peanut butter. Roasted, salted peanuts may be less healthful than raw peanuts due to their high sodium content. Sprinkle peanuts on your salads for extra protein. Peanuts pair especially well with dark chocolate, caramel, and ice cream.

Peanut butter is loaded with so many good, health-promoting nutrients, including vitamin E, magnesium, iron, selenium, and vitamin B6. Because peanuts are high in calories, it is sensible to eat them in moderation as part of a healthful, calorie-controlled diet.