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THIS MONTH'S FEATURED ARTICLE
How to 'Enjoy Peanuts Responsibly'
Peanuts - they're not a nut and, like money, they don't grow on trees. Native to the Americas, they were introduced to North America from Africa via the slave trade. Metaphorical expressions like 'working for peanuts' and 'the peanut gallery' attest to their long and venerable history as a cheap source of satiation and general ubiquity. Given the right climate, they're easy to grow, and they fix nitrogen in the soil, so are useful in crop rotations. They are higher in protein than many nuts and higher in fat than any other commonly used legume (only soy is comparable), and all parts of the nut and its shell can be used for a variety of purposes.
This 'nut that is not' has spread all over the world from its original home (probably Peru or Brazil) and is most popular in South-east Asian, African and American cuisines. In the US, in its 'prepared' forms, roasted and especially roasted and pureed as peanut butter, its popularity has given it the status of cultural icon, and nothing proclaims this status so loudly as the controversy surrounding it.
Yes, they are not only paradoxical but controversial! Some dismiss peanuts as nutritionally worthless, or go even further and condemn them as universally contaminated with pesticides, poisons, molds. Parents of young children fear their allergenic reputation as well as their choking potential. Others grasp for scientific data citing their good B-vitamin content and point to studies showing that they have good levels of certain antioxidants. Others still say that they want their peanut butter and jelly no matter what, and don't want to hear anything against it!
Controversy of this form is typical of foods that have deep cultural and emotional significance for people. When a food has this status, it makes it harder to consider it purely from a nutritional standpoint, because people have other very strong motivations for considering it. In this article, I'll point out some other characteristics that culturally significant foods, including peanuts, have in common. Then, I'll address the nutritional controversies surrounding peanuts in an objective fashion, and end each section with some suggestions on 'how to enjoy peanuts responsibly.'
Since I've made such a big deal about the emotional/cultural significance of peanuts (particularly in the US), I should start by declaring my own emotional investment. I wasn't raised in the US, and on the other side of the Atlantic peanuts are much less highly valued. I love nuts and eat a lot of them, but I don't really care for peanuts and am quite neutral about them. I enjoy them on occasion but almost never buy them for myself. However, I'm not unsympathetic: I imagine how I would feel if the almonds and pecans from my childhood in Israel were subject to the same kinds of controversies and think I'd find a lot of resistance to any sort of suggestion that they could possibly be 'bad for you!'
Shared 'Controversial' Characteristics of Popular/Culturally Important Foods
What are some of the most popular foods or food ingredients in the USA? Well, wheat, corn, soy, peanuts, dairy products all leap to mind. And which foods are people most likely to be allergic to? Well, wheat, corn, soy, peanuts, dairy products all leap to mind again!
It seems that there is a connection between high rates of production and use, mostly in foods that are processed before market, and instances of allergy. There is also a connection between both of those and controversy over the 'goodness' of the food item in question, all of which can be traced back to the cultural and emotional significance of the food. For everyone who maintains that if a food causes allergies in one person, then it's not fit for any human/anyone with the same blood type/anyone else in that person's family to eat either, there's someone else who will insist that the 'whole allergy thing' is overblown.
In fact, allergies are insidious conditions: some will worsen with repeated exposure to the trigger whereas others will resolve and tolerance will be built. They are not to be taken lightly: in certain cases they can be life-threatening or can cause permanent damage to the digestive system. However, the idea that no one should eat allergenic foods at all, apart from being impractical, is unnecessary. Where the allergic response is not present, the food may well be a good source of nutrition (and satisfaction!) for the non-allergic person.
It appears to be one of the paradoxes of humanity that culturally prized foods become high-demand foods, and that the processing and preparation practices to keep up with this demand often ends up compromising the wholesomeness of the end product. It is up to us to decide whether we wish to continue consuming those foods and, if so, based on our own body's susceptibilities, what measures we will take to make sure that we enjoy them without overtaxing our bodies. I'll be suggesting some ways to do this.
More on Allergies
Why are these foods such frequent allergens? What do they all have in common apart from their iconic cultural status? Well, for a start, they are all produced in enormous quantities. In general, the more mass-produced a food is, the less quality control exists in its production. The higher the quantities of food produced, the more likely it is that they will be grown in vast monocultures, probably on the same ground year after year, exploiting economies of scale and taxing the soil. This will inevitably lead to an increasing reliance on inorganic nutrients, physically 'replacing' with mineral salts everything that growing has removed from the soil. Inorganic fertilizers do not permit beneficial soil organisms to thrive, which renders the plants more vulnerable to all kinds of pathogens. In the mass-production environment, this means that they will be treated with pesticides, many of which will be absorbed into the end product.
Around 1.5 million Americans have serious peanut allergies and the numbers have increased significantly, especially among children, in the past decade.
One theory currently being examined about peanuts' allergenic quality and why it is that peanut allergies are so much more prevalent now suggests that their high fat content enables them to store the pesticides that are very heavily used on commercial peanut crops, and that the allergic person is reacting, in essence, to the pesticide residues.
Another theory starts from the observation that peanut allergies are far more prevalent in the West than in the Asian and African countries in which they are also popular and that in the West, they tend to be presented roasted, whereas in Asian cuisine they are more commonly chopped up raw and added to foods. A 2006 study showed that roasted peanuts had 22 times higher levels of Ara h1, one of the major allergenic compounds in peanuts, than their raw counterparts. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16776684
Interestingly, another very recent study http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20198439 shows that roasted peanuts, especially oil-roasted, contain higher levels of antioxidants than their raw counterparts! So, a higher dose of antioxidants will come with a higher dose of allergens into the bargain - food for thought indeed.
Some Suggestions
Accepting the potential link between pesticide levels and allergenicity, an obvious thing to do if you are a peanut eater is to buy only organic peanuts. These will be pesticide-free, and are more likely to be produced by smaller operations than the commercial equivalent, which increases the probability of successful quality control.
Furthermore, if you are a person who tends to develop food allergies, you may prefer to eat your peanuts raw or dehydrated crisp, rather than roasted, bearing in mind that roasting concentrates the allergenic compounds.
A Special Note for Mothers of Young Children
Studies have suggested that delaying the introduction of peanuts decreases the likelihood of a young child's developing an allergy. If you have a baby, it would be wise not to feed them peanuts until they are at least three years old. This includes peanut butter: in fact, it might be especially wise to avoid peanut butter unless you can obtain organic peanut butter with no additives, because the nuts are roasted (see above).
In their whole form, peanuts, like all nuts, are a choking hazard to babies, and so should not be given to small children. (I can still remember finely ground almonds as one of my own first foods, though…)
The Notorious 'Aflatoxin'
Many people have picked up on the 'aflatoxin' scare-word, although it seems that few can pronounce or spell it correctly! Here are the facts: - When peanuts are harvested, they have a moisture content of 25-30% and are very susceptible to mold as they sit in the shell. For storage purposes, they need to be dried to a moisture content of no more than 10%. There is a particular mold to which peanuts and corn are particularly susceptible, Aspergillus flavus, that releases the notorious 'aflatoxin,' which has been demonstrated to have potential adverse effects on the liver, and also to impair growth in children.
Incidentally, the production of aflatoxin is the hallmark of why Aspergillus flavus is a pathogenic fungus as opposed to a nutritious one. Not all fungi are poisonous and aflatoxin is not a fungus! But pathogenic fungi, like Aspergillus flavus and the candida species that wreak havoc in many of our digestive tracts, excrete toxic substances. Like all living organisms, they excrete as they go about their life, and it is this 'excrement' that is toxic.
In the Old Oakland Farmer's market, you can buy fresh peanuts from several vendors for much of the year. These are freshly harvested, in the shell, and have not been processed in any way. My experience with those was that they were very moist (think green peas in the pod) and very mold prone. The mold was obvious and would give the peanuts a pinkish fuzz even before the spore-producing stage. As I mentioned, I don't care for peanuts myself, but I had friends when I lived there that loved them. However, one of my favorite nuts, walnuts, are another very mold-prone nut and require similarly careful treatment.
Despite their anomalous status, peanuts in fact have much in common with 'tree nuts' and many of the recommendations for smart peanut consumption apply to the others too. If you love peanuts and wish to continue eating them, it is worth knowing that they are mold-prone, and can harbor toxic mold by-products, and taking steps to avoid mold contamination.
Some Suggestions
Aflatoxin is clearly a nasty thing. However, it is not ubiquitous in peanuts by any means: in fact, there are quality controls in place in the US to ensure that each batch of peanuts contains less than 20 parts per billion of aflatoxin. Peanuts from developing countries may not undergo as rigorous quality controls, and may also not be stored as carefully, so buying US peanuts may be a wise choice. If you are able to obtain peanuts grown in arid climates, that is another safeguard against mold, which cannot grow so well in dry environments. Dr Mercola states that Arrowhead Mills' peanut products are grown in New Mexico. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2003/08/20/peanuts-health.aspx
Other sensible measures include avoiding buying peanuts from bulk bins, especially in stores with slower turnover, where they might have been sitting for long periods of time and have been exposed to moisture. It is obviously wise to store them airtight and away from any moisture.
Many fresh nuts and grains are mold-prone, and if it is otherwise a good food for you, preventing the mold is a more loving and forgiving solution than swearing off the food altogether. Here's what I do to make sure that my walnuts are not moldy.
I always soak my walnuts (out of the shell) in a solution of water and hydrogen peroxide (about 1oz 3% peroxide to 16oz of water). The extra oxygen molecule in the peroxide is released into the water and nuts and effectively kills any mold. After a couple of hours of soaking, or even overnight, not only is the mold killed but also the tannins in the walnuts are released, making them much less bitter. Tannins aren't an issue with peanuts, but like all seeds, they contain the enzyme inhibitors that are released by soaking, and are thus rendered more digestible by the process as well as mold free. I then carefully dehydrate walnuts and store airtight in a cold place (the polyunsaturated fats are susceptible to rancidity from heat exposure - more on this below).
I would recommend the same procedure for raw peanuts unless they are to be used fresh-soaked. By the way, fresh-soaked raw peanuts make a wonderful base for a pate when processed with bell peppers, spirulina and a little garlic, salt and lemon.
It would be interesting to know whether mold contamination as well as pesticide contamination are implicated in higher levels of allergens in peanuts, whether roasting of mold-contaminated peanuts serves to concentrate the mold-excreted toxins.
What Kind of Fat?
So far, we have talked about characteristics of peanuts that have to do with how they are processed - how culture and production mediates their presentation to the consumer. However, there are certain qualities intrinsic to peanuts that are also worth paying attention to. I am horrified by the number of informational websites put out by peanut promoters that tout peanut oil as a good cooking oil because its high monounsaturated fat content raises its smoke point. It's true, just over half of the 13.8g of fat in an ounce of peanuts is monounsaturated - but nearly all the rest of it is omega-6 - the last kind of fat that you want to be exposing to high heat: that's one of the easiest ways to manufacture dangerous 'trans fats.' It may be true that peanut oil is a better choice than some of the really high-polyunsaturated oils, but this piece of advice is still very irresponsible.
Aside from the dangers associated with their exposure to heat, the omega-6 load of peanuts, both absolute and relative to their omega-3 content, bears consideration.
Omega-3 and omega-6 unsaturated fats are both essential fatty acids for many aspects of human metabolism: in other words, we need to eat them. However, it's not just the absolute quantity but also the ratio between them that is important. Nutritionists of all colors are currently sounding the alarm about the fact that the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 consumption has risen hugely since the mid-20th century. The optimal ratio is generally quoted at somewhere between 2:1 and 4:1 omega-6:omega-3. Many people nowadays are consuming a ratio closer to 20:1. A major reason for this has been the falling into disfavor of butter and lard, and their replacement with polyunsaturated oils in cooking and baking. Another is the increasing prevalence of the practice of raising meat and dairy animals on grains and legumes (predominantly corn and soy, which are very omega-6-heavy as well as suffering from the problems associated with mass-produced crops discussed above), instead of on grass. As a general rule of thumb, 'greens' are richer in omega-3's and seeds are richer in omega-6, and this ratio is perpetuated in the animal that eats them and their dairy products.
A deranged ratio of these two fats is associated with cancer, heart disease, allergic response and inflammation. Many researchers who are trying to understand the rise of the so-called 'Western Diseases' place this imbalance at center stage.
It seems especially appropriate to be discussing these fatty acids in the context of peanuts, because peanuts give the name to one specific omega-6 acid that is robustly associated with cardiovascular disease, cancer risk and inflammatory conditions in general: AA, or Arachidonic Acid. 'Arachis hypogaea' is the peanut's scientific name. It is the counterpart to the small amount of saturated fat, 'Arachidic Acid,' found in peanuts. Arachidonic Acid is an essential omega-6 fat but when too much of it is absorbed, the result is inflammation and disease. There is speculation that one of the reasons why maintaining an adequate ratio of omega-3s is so important is that these are absorbed preferentially to AA, and are protective as an offset against its potential negative effects.
Some Suggestions: Let's Keep it Simple! It's All About Balance.
I am by no means suggesting that everyone should be constantly tracking ratios or, horrors, trying to differentiate between different kinds of omega-6 fats! However, peanuts and most nuts and seeds (including grains and legumes) are much higher in omega-6 than in omega-3. Aside from this, they are such nutritional powerhouses that there would certainly be no reason to avoid them. And in many cases, the absolute quantity of the two fats is very low, most of the fat being monounsaturated. Remember, though, that the ratio is still important. Fortunately, there are a few magic seeds that come to our assistance.
In the following table, extrapolated from the analyses in http://www.nutritiondata.com, I provide the amount in mgs of Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acid per ounce of popular nuts and seeds, and provided the amounts for an ounce of salmon for comparison. Notice that peanuts have almost no omega-3's at all and thousands of mgs of omega-6's - what is peanut oil going to do to that ideal 2-4:1 ratio? Almonds are scarcely any better. Macadamia nuts, which are not in the table, contain mostly monounsaturated fats and only a tiny amount of omega 3's and 6's (more of the latter than the former).
But now look at the numbers for chia, flax and hemp Seeds. Hemp Seeds have the ideal ratio, between 2-3:1. Chia and flax seeds, like salmon, for that matter, have much more omega-3 than omega-6: in other words, they can be used correctively.
BIO
Ela Harrison Gordon is a Classical scholar, linguist and poet who has chosen to devote her life to healing and spiritual growth. She has worked as a raw food chef, beekeeper and farmer as well asa translator, writer and editor. Of English and Israeli heritage and raised in London, she has lived inthe USA since 2000 and has explored cultivated and wild land whilst living in California,
Hawaii and now Alaska.She regards her body's intolerance of grains and most modern foods, as well as her journey back
from near-death from anorexia, as blessings that have led her to a greater reverence for the body and its place in our
spiritual development, a more holistic understanding of health, and a deep interest in nutrition both of person and of planet. These blessings first led her to raw foods in 2003, and she is excited to share the breadth of what she has learned from pursuing the lifestyle in a variety of climates whilst integrating with local customs and growth patterns.
If you are a vegan who eats a lot of nuts, it would be wise to include a couple of tablespoons of flax or chia seeds on a regular basis to balance out the ratios - and, of course, to eat lots of greens. If you eat fish, wild fish from clean waters is an excellent balance also. (Farmed fish are often fed corn and soy and have the same problem with deranged ratios as farmed land animals.) Peanut butters fortified with flax meal or oil are now being sold, addressing the imbalance. If you buy these, make sure that they use organic peanuts, for the reasons discussed above. Dr Mercola suggested some time ago that you can make your own by buying natural peanut butter and pouring off the peanut oil that rises to the top to reduce the total amount of omega-6, and replace with a monounsaturated oil like olive oil if you wish. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2003/08/20/peanuts-health.aspx
It is also wise to be aware that nuts and seeds with a high polyunsaturated content should be kept cold, because these fats are prone to rancidity. This especially applies to Hemp and flax seeds and to walnuts: the rest have higher proportions of monounsaturated fats, which are more stable.
Conclusion
Peanuts are part of our culture - part of our shared heritage. As we celebrate the concept of motherhood, the nurturing principle, it is good to acknowledge this aspect of our nutrition and nurturing: the sense of participation in a tradition of eating. However, one of the primary responsibilities of a mother is to ensure that her child is fed well, on all levels. In order to do this well, she needs to know more and more about her food and where it comes from. And ultimately, we are all mothers to ourselves as well as our children. It is my hope that we can all choose to nurture ourselves on all levels, in an informed way, striking the balance between traditional comforts and nutritional smarts.
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